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WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES 


OP  THE 


RAILWAY 


OR 


STORIES  OF  THE  LOCOMOTIVE  IN  EVERY  LAND 


BY 


WILLIAM  SLOANE  KENNEDY 

AUTHOR  OF  "JOHN  GREENLEAF  WHITTIER '.    HIS  LIFE,  GENIUS,  AND 

WRITINGS,"  ETC. 


CHICAGO 
S.  C.  GRIGGS  AND  COMPANY 

1884 


COPYKIGHT,  1884, 

By  S.  C.  GRIGGS  AND  COMPANY. 


ACKNOWLEDGMENTS, 


^^LTHOUGH,  in  the  preparation  of  the  following  work 
I  have  drawn  upon  the  entire  literature  of  the  rail- 
way during  the  half-century  of  its  existence,  and  am  there- 
fore under  obligation  for  materials  to  innumerable  books, 
magazines,  and  newspapers,  I  must  yet  acknowledge  espe- 
cial indebtedness  to  the  "Railway  Age,"  of  Chicago;  to 
files  of  the  London  "Times,"  and  certain  early  American 
newspapers  kindly  placed  at  my  disposal  by  the  librarian 
of  the  Boston  Athenaeum,  Mr.  Charles  A.  Cutter;  and  to 
Mr.  William  H.  Brown's  "  History  of  the  First  Locomotives 
in  America."    Mr.  Brown's  book  is  standard  authority  on 
the  subject  of  early  American  railroads,  although  it  has 
been  for  some  time  out  of  print,  and  is  unfitted  for  the 
general  reader  by  reason  of  its  technical  details.  The 
chapter  on  "  The  Vertical  Railway,"  in  the  present  volume, 
was  originally  contributed  by  me  to  "  Harper's  ■  Monthly 
Magazine";  and  for  permission  to  use  it  here,  with  the 
accompanying  illustrations,  I  am  indebted  to  the  courtesy 
of  Messrs.  Harper  &  Brothers.    Special  thanks  are  ren- 
dered to  Mr.  E.  H.  Talbott,  editor  of  the  "  Railway  Age," 

iii 


iv  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS. 

for  the  engraving  of  the  George  Stephenson  passenger-car, 
that  of  the  old  Michigan  Central  railroad  car,  the  car  "  Vic- 
tory," Interior  of  "  Eailway  Age  "  car,  and  several  others. 
Messrs.  Hoopes  and  Townsend,  of  Philadelphia,  have 
placed  in  my  hands  for  use  the  quaint  picture  of  "  Old  Iron- 
sides," with  his 

"Train' of  cars  behind,  obedient,  merrily  following"; 

and  Messrs.  H.  K.  Porter  and  Company,  of  Pittsburgh,  have 
kindly  furnished  an  electrotype  of  their  logging  train.  Mr. 
Thomas  A.  Edison  and  the  Leo  Daft  Electric  Light  Company 
have  furnished  views  of  their  electric  locomotives.  To  the 
"  Scientific  American  "  I  am  indebted  for  the  use  of  sev- 
eral cuts;  also  to  Mr.  John  Stevenson  for  permission  to 
reproduce  the  engraving  of  his  first  street  car.  The  train 
of  cars  figured  on  page  thirteen  is  a  reduced  fac-simile  of 
the  large  folded  picture  that  forms  the  frontispiece  to  the 
original  edition  of  Thomas  Gray's  work  on  the  railway 
(London:  1823).  The  picture  is,  of  course,  an  ideal  one,  for 
when  it  was  made  the  railway  was  not  in  existence.  . 

W.  S.  K. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  I. 

Introduction    -     _  ^ 

Sidney  Smith  and  the  Solan  Goose,  1.  The  Womb  of  the 
Dragon,  2.  Balaklava-charge  of  the  Locomotive,  2. 
Poetry  of  the  Train,  3.  Anecdote  of  the  Ameer  of  Afghan- 
istan, 3.  The  Railroad  a  Good  Democrat,  3.  The  Feats  of 
Steam,  3.    From  Cologne  to  London,  4. 

CHAPTER  II. 

Beginnings  in  Europe   6- 

"  Grasshopper  Engines,"  6.  The  Cornish  Monster  and  the 
Clergyman,  6.  "  Na-noth-nothing  to  pay,  my  de-dear  Mr. 
Devil!"  7.  Road-engines  with  Legs,  8.  "  Owd  Neddy's 
Quaker  Line  "  (the  Stockton  and  Darlington),  8.  First  Rail- 
road Passenger  Car  in  the  World,  9.  First  Steam  Passenger 
Car  (George  Stephenson's),  10.  The  "Puffing  Billy"  and 
the  Burning-glass,  12.  Quaint  Early  Signals,  12.  The 
Darlington  Jubilee  of  1875,  12.  The  Railroad  Train  of 
Thomas  Gray,  14.  Snapped  Legs  and  Bursting  Hearts,  15. 
A  Thrill  of  Annihilation!  16.  Downfall  of  the  Bonifaces, 
16.  Eating  a  Stewed  Engine-wheel,  16.  George  Stephen- 
son before  the  Parliamentary  Committee,— Roars  of  In- 
credulous Laughter,  17.  Stephenson's  Victory  at  Rainhill, 
18.    Opening  of  the  Liverpool  and  Manchester  Railroad,— 


vi 


CONTENTS. 


The  First  Railway  Accident,  18.  Fanny  Kemble's  Loco- 
motive Ride  with  Old  Northumbrian  George,  19  (note). 
The  First  French  Railway,— "  Triomphe  merveilleuse  /  " 
"  Plaisir  inconnu  !  "  20.  A  Grouty  Englishman,  21.  Old 
Samuel  Breck  of  the  Corps  of  Silver  Grays,  23.  Railway 
Mania  of  1836,  23.  "  Wily,  Slily,  Gammon  and  Bubble!" 
24.  Railway  Mania  of  1844,  24.  Spinsters  and  Scrip,  25. 
.Speculations  of  a  Fascinating  Marchioness,  26.  The  Debate 
of  the  Crack  Engineers,  28.  Railway  Magnate  Hudson  and 
his  "  Umbrageous  Scrip,"  28. 

CHAPTER  III. 

The  First  American  Railroads  30- 

Oliver  Evans's  Steam- wagon  on  Wheels,  30.    His  Remark- 
able Prophecy,  30.   Dr.  Darwin's  Fiery  Chariot,  31.  Mother 
Shipton  a  Myth,  31.    Colonel  John  Stevens's  Railway  on 
Posts,  32.    Old  ' 'Granite  Railroad"  of  Quincy  (first  in 
America),  33.    First  Snow-plough,  34.    First  Revolution  on 
American  Soil  of  the  Driving-wheel  of  a  Locomotive,  36. 
Peter  Cooper,  the  "Father  of  the  Locomotive  System  in 
America,"  39.     Peter  Cooper  building  his  Engine,  the 
" Tom  Thumb,"  39.    Baron  Krudener  and  the  Sailing-car, 
39.    The   "Cowed"  Editors,   39.    Race  of  the  "Tom 
Thumb  "and  the  "  Gallant  Gray, "  44.   The  "  Flying  Dutch- 
man," 46.    A  Negro  Fireman  sits  on  the  Safety-valve  of 
the  ' '  Best  Friend, "  with  Unpleasant  Results,  46.  Silhouette- 
artist  Brown  snips  out  a  Quaint  Picture  of  the  First  Rail- 
road Train  in  the  North,  47.     Thundering  along  toward 
Schenectady,  48.  Wood-sparks,  Burnt  Umbrellas,  andMerry- 
woful  Deck-passengers,  50.    Stampede  along  the  Road,  51. 
Ludicrous  Trial-trip  of  "Old  Ironsides,"  52.    Old  Car, 
"  Victory,"  54.    A  Novel  Track-illuminator,  54.  Pounding 
down  ' '  Snake-heads, "  56.   Old  Custom  of  Registering  Names 


CONTENTS. 


*  * 

Vll 


of  Railway  Passengers,  56.  The  Early  Railroads  of  Massa- 
chusetts, 57.  Edward  Everett  Hale's  First  Locomotive  Ride, 
57  (note).  Thick-headed  Legislators,  59.  Boston  and  Wor- 
cester Railroad,  59.  First  Locomotive-whistle  in  Ohio,  62. 
The  Lexington  and  Frankfort  Railroad  in  Kentucky,  62. 
Its  Queer  Little  Locomotive  with  Hickory  Brooms  in  Front, 
63.  First  Puff  of  a  Locomotive  on  the  Prairies,  65. 
Charge  of  a  Bull  upon  the  Engine,  66.  General  Semples 
and  his  Prairie-locomotive,  66.  View  of  Old  Car  on  the 
Michigan  Central,  67. 

CHAPTER  IV. 

The  Banding  of  the  Continent     ------  68- 

Trunk  Lines,  68.    Colossal  Statue  of  Columbus,  hewn  out 
of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  68  (note).    "  The  Strong,  Light 
Works  of  Modern  Engineers,"  69.    Longest  Railroad  in 
the  World,  69  (note).    First  Railroad  out  of  Chicago,  70. 
Union  Pacific,— The  Spinning  of  the  Iron  Thread,  The 
Steady  Tramp  across  the  Plains,  The  Last  Spike,  70.  Cen- 
tral Pacific,—  The  Battle  with  the  Sierras,  71.  An  Avalanche 
of  Earth,  72.    Southern  Pacific,— Tank-cars,  Red  Apaches, 
Sand-storms,  73.    The  Mexican  Central,—"  Viva  la  Repub- 
lic cle  Mexico  !  "  73.    The  Denver  and  Rio  Grande  Railway, 
the  Iron  Poem  of  the  West,  74.    Railway  Exposition  at  Chi- 
cago,—Old  Curiosity  Shop,  Electric  Railway,  75.  Night- 
battle  with  the  Indians  on  the  Union  Pacific,  78.  Anecdote 
of  the  Tenderfoot  Engineer,  79.    Trains  running  the  Fire- 
gauntlet,  80.    Waterspouts  on  the  Plains,— Lost  Train, 
Buried  Locomotive,  80.    A  Wonderful  Hail-storm,  80. 
Snow-ploughs,— Charge  of  the  Harnessed  Engines,  82. 
Trains  lost  in  Snow-storms,  83.    The  New  Time-standard, 
87. 


k  <  • 

Vlll 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  V.  , 

The  Locomotive  in  .Slippers     -  90-101 

The  Three-elephant  Team  in  Ceylon,  90.  "Change  Cars 
for  Nazareth ! "  90.  The  Steam  Wagon  in  the  Land  of  Roses, 
90.  The  Locomotive  in  the  Sunrise  Land,— the  Mikado  open- 
ing the  First  Railroad  in  Japan,  91.  How  the  "  Japs  "  take 
to  Steam  Travel,  92.  The  First  and  Only  Railroad  in  China, 
—  Disturbing  the  Spirits  of  the  Earth  and  Air,  93.  India,— 
Attack  of  an  Elephant  upon  a  Locomotive;  A  Military  Cor- 
don of  Stations;  Feathery-foliaged  Telegraph-poles ;  Novel 
Sleeping  Cars;  The  Chota-hazare;  The  Railroad  a  Caste- 
destroyer;  Uproar  of  the  Natives  at  a  Station ;  The  "Fra- 
grance of  a  Monkey-house  " ;  Scarlet  Turbans  and  Grinning 
Teeth,  94.  Africa,—  Balconied  Cars ;  Tipped  into  the  Nile  ; 
Prayer-carpets ;  The  Imperturbable  Old  Turk ;  The  Mish- 
mish,  98. 

CHAPTER  VI. 

A  Mosaic  of  Travel  101-114 

Russia,— Sumptuous  Two-story  Saloon-Cars;  Clean,  Bright 
Restaurants,  101.  Travel  in  Norway,  102.  Sweden,— The 
Arcadia  of  Travellers  by  Rail ;  Paul  du  Chaillu  and  his 
Wonderful  Dinner,  103.  Germany,  —  No  Broken  Rails ;  The 
Conductor  in  his  Little  Watch-tower ;  FiveHours  and  Fifteen 
Beers  from  Cologne  to  Mainz ;  The  Jolly  Buffets,  104.  Spain, 
—  Take  your  Time ;  '  <  Quien  quiere  Agua?  "  Fruit  Vendors, 
106.  France,— The  Missis  of  Mugby  Junction  relates  her 
Travels,  "The  Universal  French  Refreshment  Sangwich 
busts  on  your  Disgusted  Vision";  Train-lunches,  107. 
England,— Shadowing  a  Thief  in  Woman's  Apparel; 
Features  of  English  Cars;  Description  of  the  Underground 
Railways  of  London,  Gigantic  Subterranean  and  Subfluvial 
Tunnels,  Weird  Gliding  of  the  Noiseless  Trains,  111. 


CONTENTS. 


IX 


CHAPTER  VII. 


A  Handful  of  Cukiosities 


114-125 


A  Locomotive  on  Sled-runners,  114.  Railroads  on  the  Ice, 
115.  A  Railroad  in  the  Tree-tops,  115.  The  Old  Fremont 
and  Maumee  Road,  11.5.  Wooden  Railways,  116.  Bicycle 
Railways, — The  Steam  Caravan  at  Aleppo;  A  Two-wheeled 
Locomotive  in  New  Jersey,  118.  Toy  Railroads,  118.  A 
Submarine  Railway,  119.  The  Marine  Railway  of  Captain 
James  B.  Eads, — Transfer  of  Ocean  Vessels  across  the  Isth- 
mus of  Tehuantepec  by  Rail,  119.  Atmospheric  Railways 
(Compressed  Air  the  Motive-power),  120.  A  Flying  Loco- 
motive, 121.  Cars  Propelled  by  Sails,  121.  A  Travelling 
Telegraph-office,  122.    The  Dynograph-car,  124. 


The  Locomotive  a  Good  Climber,  125.  The  Gravity  Road 
of  Honesdale, — Magically  Propelled  (?ars,  125.  Old  Switch- 
back Road,  126.  Old  Portage  Railroad  across  the  Alleghany 
Mountains,— "  One  of  the  Wonders  of  the  World,"  127.  All 
Aboard  for  Pittsburgh  via  Horse-car,  Canal,  and  Inclined 
Plane!  128.  Old  Mountain-top  Track  of  Virginia,  129. 
The  Mt.  Washington  Railroad,  129.  The  Rigi  Roads,—  Up 
the  Swiss  Mountains  by  Rail,  130.  The  Mount  Desert 
Railway, — bolted  to  the  Solid  Ledge,  131.  Up  Mt.  Vesuvius 
by  Steam-power, — Appalling  Steepness  of  the  Track,  Cisterns 
dug  in  the  Solid  Lava,  Road  insured  against  the  Volcano ! 
132.  The  Magnificent  Tunnels,  Viaducts,  and  Snow-sheds 
of  the  Alpine  Railroads, — Whirling  through  Mountains  in 
Corkscrew  Fashion, —  Cattle  as  Small  as  Ants  on  a  Table- 
cloth,—  St.  Gotharcl  and  Mt.  Cenis  Tunnels,  134.   The  Hoo- 


CHAPTBR  VIII. 


Mountain  Railways 


125-145 


X 


CONTENTS. 


sac  Tunnel,— History  of  its  Construction,  Its  Cost,  Terrible 
Accident  in  the  Central  Shaft,  Five  Miles  of  Solemn  Gloom, 
Torpedo  Signals,  138.  The  Wonder  of  the  Andes  Mount- 
ains,—  A  Railroad  among  the  Clouds  in  the  Empire  of  the 
Incas,  The  Highest  Track  on  the  Globe;  Gorge  of  Los  In- 
femillos,  Tuflel  de  la  Cima;  Thrilling  Descent  in  a  Hand- 
car, 141. 

CHAPTER  IX. 

The  Vertical  Railway     _______  145-158 

The  First  Freight  Elevators  in  the  World,  146.  The  Seven 
Boxes  of  Sugar  and  the  Air-cushion  of  Albert  Betteley,  147. 
Otis  Tuft's  "Vertical  Screw  Railway"  in  the  Fifth  Avenue 
Hotel,  148.  Great  Curiosity  of  Visitors,  149.  The  Huge 
Spiral  Shaft  and  its  Wheels,— The  Brakes  and  the  Fluid- 
retarder,  149.  The  First  Rope  Elevator,  151.  Hydraulic 
Elevators,— Soaring  of  the  Wingless  Bird  in  Paris,  152.  The 
Old  Spy-glass  Elevators  of  the  New  York  Post-office,  153. 
Accidents,—  Decapitation  of  a  Negro,  etc.,  154.  The  Serio- 
comic Air-cushion  Experiment  at  the  Parker  House,  Bos- 
ton, 155.  Air-cushion  Feats  at  Chicago  Exposition  of  1880, 
156.  The  Architectural  Grandeur  of  recent  City  Buildings 
due  to  the  Vertical  Railway,  156. 

CHAPTER  X. 

The  Lightning  Harnessed— Tramways  -     .     «  158-178 

Electricity,  the  Coming  Motor  and  the  Benefactor  of  the 
Poor,  158.  Around  the  World  in  a  Train  of  Flying-cars, 
159.  Tissandier's  Electric  Air-car,  Paris,  1883,  159.  Prof. 
Werner  Siemens,  the  Father  of  the  Electric  Railway  Sys- 
tem, 159,  The  First  Electric  Locomotive  in  America,  159. 
The  Berlin  Roads,— A  Horse  strikes  Lightning  with  his 
Shoe,  160.   Runaway  Car  in  Paris,  —  Hop,  Snap,  Flash !  161. 


CONTENTS. 


xi 


The  Splendid  Old  Genie  at  Work  in  the  Mines  of  Saxony, 
161.  By  Lightning  to  the  Giant's  Causeway,  162.  Edison's 
Enchantments  at  Menlo  Park, —  His  Electric  Locomo- 
tive, 162.  Leo  Daft's  Electric  Locomotive,  the  Ampere,  oh 
the  Saratoga,  M.t.  McGregor  and  Lake  George  Railroad,  165. 
The  Low-tension  Current  entirely  Safe,  165.  Pull  of  the 
Electro-magnets,  165.  Electric  Railways  in  London,  166. 
In  the  United  States,  168.  The  First  Street  Car,  169.  Old 
Harlem  Line* in  New  York,  169.  "Whoa!"  Crash!  171. 
The  Cambridge  Horse  Railroad  of  Massachusetts,  172. 
L'Americain,  172.  George  Francis  Train  and  his  Grand 
Street-railway  Banquet  in  Liverpool,  172.  The  Trumpet- 
ers of  Buenos  Ay  res,  173.  The  Cable  Railroads,  173.  The 
Elevated  Railways  of  New  York,  174.  Brick  Viaducts  of 
London,  174.  Grease  Splashes,  Burnt  Coats,  and  Rapid 
Transit,  176.  Quaint  Report  of  the  Massachusetts  Legisla- 
tors in  1827  on  a  Bicycle  Railway  with  "  Sidelings,"  176. 

CHAPTER  XI. 

The  Functions  of  the  Railway  in  War    .-    .  178-189 

Railways,  the  Delicate  Nerve  System  of  a  Country,  178.  The 
Great  Railroad  Riots  of  1877,  178.  The  Railway  a  Preca- 
rious Reliance  when  within  Reach  of  the  Enemy,  179.  A 
Lacteal  Tube  for  Sherman's  Army  in  its  March  to  the  Sea, 
180.  The  Strode  Ferrate  in  Italian  Wars,  180.  The  Hos- 
pital-trains of  Germany,  181.  Our  Sanitary  Commission's 
Railway  Ambulances,  181.  The  Military  Railway  Or- 
ganization of  the  German  Army,  182.  The  Lack  of  such 
an  Organization  in  France,  182.  The  Practice-railway  of 
the  German  Corps,  183.  General  Sherman  again, —  The  Con- 
struction Corps  during  his  Atlanta  Campaign, — Whistle  of 
the  Yankee  Locomotive,  184.  Story  of  the  Capture  of  a 
Locomotive  by  Twenty-two  Picked  Soldiers, —  Their  Wild 


Xll 


CONTENTS. 


Railway  Dash,  Capture,  and  Subsequent  Adventures,  185. 
An  Armored  Railway  Train  in  Egypt,  188. 

CHAPTER  XII. 

The  Luxuries  of  Travel  189-199 

Mr.  Breck  and  his  Little  Jeremiad,  189.  The  Travelling 
Coach  of  Napoleon  I,  189.  Contrasted  with  the  Imperial 
Suite  of  Railway  Coaches  employed  by  Napoleon  HI  and 
the  Empress  Eugenie,  190.  The  Travelling  of  the  Queen 
of  Sheba  and  Queen  Victoria, — The  Royal  Night  Train  from 
Windsor  to  Balmoral,  191.  Senator  Sharon  orders  out  his 
Wagon  for  a  Drive  over  the  Continent,  191.  Vanderbilt's 
Plying  Palace, — A  Hundred  Miles  in  a  Hundred  Minutes, 
192.  The  " Railway  Age"  Car  a  Marvel  of  Beauty,  193. 
Invention  of  Sleeping  and  Palace  Cars  by  Woodruff,  Wag- 
ner, and  Pullman,  193.  The  Mann  Boudoir  Cars,  195. 
Smoking  Cars, — Adventure  with  Two  Feminine  Meer- 
schaums, 186.  Speed,  —  The  Fastest  Trains  of  Europe  and 
America,  196.    A  Train  stopped  by  Mushrooms,  198. 

CHAPTER  XIII. 

The  Locomotive  akd  its  Master     _  199-212 

"  Staym-ingynes,  that  Stand  in  Lines,"  199.  * '  Grip  and 
Go,"  the  Requisites  of  a  Good  Locomotive,  199.  Camel- 
backs  and  Moguls,  199.  English  and  American  Engines 
Compared,  199.  The  Crimson  Plume  of  the  Locomotive  Fun- 
nel, 200.  A  Cunning  old  Hawk  flying  in  the  Smoke,  200. 
Appetite  of  the  Fire-steed, —  Dishes  he  Eats,  201.  Groom- 
ing the  Locomotive  and  Oiling  up  his  Joints,  201.  The  Mid- 
night Ride  of  an  Engine-Cleaner,  202.  Asleep  on  a  Locomo- 
tive, 203.  Trials  of  Locomotive  Engineers,  203.  Heroic 
Death  of  Engineer  Joseph  A.  Seeds,  204.    Railway  Yarns 


CONTENTS. 


•  •  • 

xm 


of  the  West,  205.  Chased  by  a  Locomotive,  206.  A  Lo- 
comotive's Tour  through  a  Depot,  207.  Fight  for  an 
Engine  by  the  Seaside, — A  Merry  Tug  of  War,  Steam 
versus  Mules  and  Men,  208. 

CHAPTER  XIV. 

The  Track  -    -    -    -    -  212-225 

The  Making  of  a  Steel  Rail,  212.  Gauges,  Broad  and  Nar- 
row, 213.  A  Railroad  Ten  Inches  Wide  in  Massachusetts, 
214.  Stations,  or  Depots, — American  Barracks  versus  Italian 
Frescoes  and.  Orange  Trees;  Fountains,  Flowers,  Damask 
Curtains,  and  Oil  Paintings  in  European  Stations,  214. 
Something  about  Railroad  Signals,  216.  The  First  Tele- 
graphic Signalling  (on  the  Erie  Road),  217.  An  Accident 
in  1841,  218.  The  Train-despatcher  in  his  Den,  218. 
The  Block  System,  220.  Automatic  Electric  Signals, 
220.  The  Old  Train  Staff  and  Ticket  System  in  Great 
Britain,  221.  The  Signal  and  Interlocking  Towers  and 
Cabins  of  London,  one  of  the  Wonders  of  the  World,  221. 
Sixteen  Hundred  Trains  a  Day  at  Clapham  Junction,  223. 
London  enmeshed  with  Labyrinthine  Curves,  224. 

CHAPTER  XV. 

The  Teain  ----------  225-244 

The  Manufacture  of  a  Car-wheel, — The  Silver-diamond  Fila- 
ments of  the  " Tread";  Swinging  the  Hot  Wheels  into  the 
Annealing-pits,  225.  Paper  Wheels,  226.  The  Miller  Coup- 
ler, Buffer,  and  Platform,  226.  Description  of  the  West- 
inghouse  Brake,  227.  The  Baby  Elephant  and  the  Air-brake 
Rope,  228.  Invention  of  the  Conductor's  Bell-rope.  228. 
Electric  Signal-bells  on  Cars,  229.  Lighting  Cars  in  Eu- 
rope,—  Edison's  Incandescent  Lamps,  and  Phosphorescent 


xiv 


CONTENTS. 


Paint,  230.  The  Eastman  Non-freezing  Car,  230.  History 
and  Description  of  the  English  and  American  Postal-car  Sys- 
tems, 231.  Story  of  the  Express-car  Business,  232.  Rail- 
road Tickets,— their  Invention  in  England,  Description  of 
the  Delicate  and  Curious  Machinery  used  in  Printing  them, 
First  Use  in  America;  Coupon  Tickets,  first  used  on 
the  Baltimore  and  Ohio  Road;  The  Cheap  Excursion 
Ticket,  233.  About  Conductors,— Fight  of  a  Man  with  a 
Railroad,  237.  Embezzlements  and  Spotters,  238.  Petty 
Thieving  by  Railway  Employes  in  Europe,— Appropriating 
Wine  and  Fat  Dairy  Cheeses,  239.  Dare-Devil  Train  Rob- 
bery, 239.  "In  as  Nice  a  Little  Trap  as  ever  I  saw," 241. 
Heigho!  a  Man  inside  a  Box,  242.  Train  Robbery  in  Mis- 
souri, 242.  Conclusion,— Shortcomings  of  the  Railroad; 
Its  Future,  243. 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS. 


"The  Experiment"    ...     .         .     ...     .  9 

!  George  Stephenson's  Passenger  Car   .     ...     .     .  11 

Thomas  Gray's  Idea  of  a  Eailroad  Train    ...  13 

First  American  Railway  (The  Granite  Road)  .     .  34 

The  "  Stourbridge  Lion  "   37 

Peter  Cooper's  Locomotive   40 

The  "  Best  Friend  "   45 

:  The  "  De  Witt  Clinton  "  and  Coaches    ....  49 

First  Railroad  Train  in  Pennsylvania   .              .  53 

1  The  "  Victory"   55 

!  Old  Railway  Time-table     .  '.60 

Michigan  Central  Railroad  Car,  1848    .     .     .     .  67 

i  The  "Arabian"  .76 

A  Locomotive  on  Sled  Runners   114 

:  Logging  Railway  Train   117 

j  Sailing  Car  (Kansas  Pacific  Railway)    ....  123 

!  Mount  Vesuvius  Railway  Car   133 

Waterman's  Elevator                                           .  147 

The  First  Passenger  Elevator     .     .     .     .     •     .  149 

Edison's  Electric  Locomotive    .     .         .     .     •     •  163 

I  The  Daft  Electric  Locomotive   167 

The  First  Street  Car  in  the  World      ....  169 

Armored  Railway  Train     .     .   187 

Interior  of  the  "  Railway  Age  "  Car     ....  193 

XV 


Brakes  were  hugged  about  the  wheels, 

All  the  cranks  a  stillness  kept, 

Shadows  on  the  polish  slept, 
And  the  demon  under  seals 
Quiet  lulled  the  murmuring  ire 
Of  our  iron  heart  of  fire, 
Till  we  chafed  it  into  toil, 
Gave  it  blast  and  gave  it  oil. 
Now  we  nurse  a  mad  delight, 

Dash  the  iron  leagues  behind, 

Horse  a  wrath  and  drink  a  wind, 
Run  outrageous  through  the  night. 

4 

***** 

Water  boil  and  fire  burn 

In  the  oily  steaming  urn; 
Let  the  fire  and  water  waste. 

They  that  tarry  wind  and  tide, 

Safely  to  the  harbor  ride; 
Ruin  cracks  the  skull  of  Haste. 
Best  though  life  may  be  in  action, 

Action  is  not  all  in  all; 
Till  the  track  is  clear  for  traction 

Stand  we,  though  the  heavens  fall ; 

Stand  we  still  and  steady,  though 

From  the  valve  the  vapor  blow, 

From  the  fire  the  fuel  go. 
Who  shall  dare  to  antedate 
By  a  step  the  step  of  Fate? 

— E.  W.  Ellsworth. 

xvi 


WONDERS  AKD  CURIOSITIES  OF 

THE  RAILWAY. 


CH  APT  EE  I. 

INTRODUCTION. 

Man  is  become  a  bird ;  he  can  fly  longer  and  quicker  than  a  Solan  goose. 
The  mamma  rushes  sixty  miles  in  two  hours,  to  the  aching  finger  of  her  con- 
jugating and  declining  grammar-boy.  The  early  Scotchman  scratches  him- 
self in  the  morning  mists  of  the  North,  and  has  porridge  in  Piccadilly,  before 
the  setting  sun.  The  Puseyite  priest,  after  a  rush  of  one  hundred  miles,  ap- 
pears with  his  little  volume  of  nonsense  at  the  breakfast  of  his  bookseller. 
Everything  is  near,  everything  is  immediate.— Sydney  Smith. 

t  I  ^HE  huge,  ample-shadowed  foundry;  the  peculiar  fra- 
J-  grance  of  burnt  earth  and  iron;  the  straight  sun- 
ribbons  slanting  down  from  the  lantern  through  the 
dim-blue  smoke;  nimbus-rays  of  gold-colored  light  bursting 
out  of  the  blast-furnaces;  men  passing  rapidly  to  and  fro 
with  encrusted  ladles  of  glittering  liquor,  out  of  which 
beauteous  gold-sparkles  leap  upward  in  many  a  sprangle 
and  drooping  curve;  cool  earth-moulds  licked  by  tongues 
of  purple  fire;  the  sullen  trip-hammer  battering  the  massy 
cakes  of  wax- like  metal,  the  changing  colors  as  it  cools  — 
pale  lemon,  gold,  red,  black;  the  jet  of  water  applied;  the 
boy  controlling  the  huge  steam-hammer  that  can  crack  a 
walnut  or  shatter  a  cannon-ball;  the  deafening  clamor  of 
the  constructing  and  finishing  room,  the  hard  ring  of  the 
resonant  iron,  the  steel  ribs,  artery-tubes,  "  the  black  cylin- 


2        WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 


dric  body,  golden  brass  and  silvery  steel,"  and,  finally,  the 
great  crane  that  lifts  up  the  monster  in  chains,  and  carries 
it  to  the  doorway,  and  sets  it  down  in  all  the  resplendence 
of  its  polish  and  paint,  ready  to  begin  its  thirty  years  of 
toil.  This  is  the  building  of  the  locomotive;  out  of  this 
foundry-womb  is  born  our  strong  beast  of  burden,  the 
dusky  demon  who  trundles  our  errands,  on  the  plains  the 
rival  of  the  bison,  in  the  desert  outtiring  the  camel,  among 
the  mountains  as  sure-footed  as  the  llama, 

"Type  of  the  modern,  emblem  of  motion  and  power," 

perpetuator  of  democracies,  mingler  of  thoughts  and  hearts, 
giver  of  bread,  peacemaker,  pet  and  pride  of  commerce, 
patient  drudge  and  bitted  dragon  of  the  world. 

To  four  things  may  the  rush  of  a  fast  express-train  be 
likened-— a  hurricane,  a  prairie  fire,  the  thunder-trample  of 
a  herd  of  wild  animals,  and  the  battle- charge  of  a  regiment 
of  cavalry.  Hugo  gives  you  the  feeling  in  the  storms  of  his 
"  Toilers  of  the  Sea,"  and  in  the  charge  of  the  cuirassiers  in 
uLes  Mis6rables."  The  locomotive  has  turned  our  coach- 
men into  heroes  —  one  gain  at  least;  the  exchange  of 
leather  ribbons  for  steel  has  made  out  of  beer-soaken 
Tony  Weller  a  brave  captain;  and  if  the  man  in  blue 
overalls  and  black  cap  is  not  so  jolly  and  communicative  as 
his  predecessor  in  corduroys  and  gloves,  he  is  at  least  sober, 
faithful  and  intelligent. 

The  thrill  of  wonder  that  we  feel  at  the  sight  of  the  loco- 
motive is  partly  caused  by  the  circumstance  that  in  it  we 
behold  power  utilized  by  a  piece  of  mechanism  to  transport 
itself  through  space,  and  we  generally  associate  self-locomo- 
tion with  animal  life.  That  there  is  a  fierce  and  manly 
poetry  in  the  make-up  and  performances  of  a  locomotive 
nearly  everybody  feels,  though  not  knowing  exactly  how  to 


IKTKODUCTIOlSr. 


3 


express  the  thought.  "It  is  better  than  a  page  of  the 
Iliad,"  says  one.  "  A  Balaklava- charge  every  day,"  says 
another.  And  our  old  Homeric  poet,  Whitman,  has  caught 
the  inspiration  of  it  in  his  "Locomotive  in  Winter." 
There  is  poetry  in  the  hum  of  an  approaching  train ;  in  the 
twisted  and  braided  transparency  of  the  heat  as  it  leaves 
the  locomotive  funnel;  in  the  iliacal  convolutions  and 
drifted  sable  of  the  smoke,  and  the  delicate  flushings  of  the 
snowy  steam  as  it  floats  for  a  moment  in  wayward  indo- 
lence behind  fche  train. 

But  the  word  "  power  "  expresses  more  accurately  than 
"beauty"  the  spirit  of  the  railroad.  When  Sheer  Ali, 
Ameer  of  Afghanistan,  was  taking  his  first  railway  journey, 
and  had  carefully  examined  the  locomotive,  the  cars,  and 
the  workshops  of  the  line,  — "No  longer,"  said  he,  "can  we 
talk  of  Aristotle  and  Diogenes."  The  Ameer  evidently  had 
an  inkling  of  the  enormous  dynamic  possibilities  of  such  an 
institution  as  the  railroad.  But  what  he  would  have  said 
if  he  had  stood  for  an  hour  at  one  of  the  great  railway 
centres  of  London,  and  what  thoughts  he  would  have  enter- 
tained in  view  of  the  tunnels  of  the  Alps  and  the  Andes,  or 
the  astounding  railway  performances  of  the  United  States 
(in  1882  eleven  thousand  five  hundred  and  ninety -one  miles 
of  track  were  laid  in  this  country),  it  is  impossible  to  say. 

Just  what  is  to  be  the  worth  of  the  railroad  as  a  civiliz- 
ing factor,  it  is  perhaps  too  soon  to  determine.  It  is  quite 
possible  that  rapid  locomotion  may  not  in  any  way  assist  in 
deepening  the  humanitarian  culture  of  select  coteries  of 
antiquarians  and  artists,  but  it  is  a  strong  force  for  the 
uplifting  of  the  people.  The  railroad  is  a  good  democrat,  a 
great  leveller,  and  that  is  one  reason  why  old-fashioned 
aesthetes,  like  Ruskin,  hate  it  so  much.     How  it  intensifies 


4       WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 


all  the  activities  of  society,  cuts  in  two  the  barriers  of 
sectional  and  national  exclusiveness,  weakens  caste  (notably 
in  India),  diffuses  the  sunshine  of  intelligence,  carries  the 
chopper  to  the  tree,  the  miner  to  the  mine,  the  ploughman 
to  the  prairie;  humbles  the  haughtiness  of  the  seaport  city 
by  placing  that  of  the  interior  on  about  the  same  intel- 
lectual level ;  stretches  out  the  great  municipalities  into  vast 
areas  of  rural  suburbs;*  carries  along  its  wealthy  arteries 
the  golden  grain  that  feeds  the  world;  transports  our  mes- 
sage a  thousand  miles  and  receives  a  penny  in  return;  con- 
veys our  precious  packages  swiftly  and  safely ;  and  with  the 
cooperation  of  the  telegraph  brings  us  immediately  to  the 
bedside  of  sick  or  dying  friends. 

A  fast  horse  travelling  eight  miles  an  hour  is  burdened 
by  the  weight  of  one  man;  a  locomotive  has  the  draught- 
power  of  two  thousand  horses,  and  rushes  through  space  at 
the  rate  of  sixty  miles  an  hour,  with  a  load  of  a  hundred 
tons,  yet  feels  no  fatigue.  In  the  year  1804  it  took  four 
days  to  get  from  New  York  to  Boston;  now  it  takes  six 
hours.  In  1817  it  cost  one  hundred  dollars  to  transport  a 
ton  of  freight  from  Buffalo  to  New  York,  and  required 
twenty  days  to  get  it  there;  now  it  takes  a  few  hours  and 
costs  a  few  mills.  The  twenty  thousand  locomotives  of  the 
United  States  do  the  work  of  forty  million  horses.  The 
contrast  in  the  matter  of  speed  between  travel  to-day  and 
travel  sixty  or  seventy  years  since  is  well  illustrated  by  a 
few  paragraphs  printed  in  the  London  "  Times"  in  1876.  In 
one  of  the  December  issues  of  that  year,  you  may  see  the 
letter  of  an  English  subscriber,  who  writes  in  a  high 

*  For  a  valuable  coup  d'mil  of  the  changes  wrought  by  railroads  in  urban 
life,  see  a  chapter  by  Chas.  F.  Adams,  Jr.,  in  the  "Memorial  History  of 
Boston,"  entitled  "  The  Canals  and  Railroad  Enterprise  of  Boston." 


IKTEODUCTIOK. 


5 


dudgeon,  because,  being  in  Cologne  on  Saturday,  the  fourth 
day  of  December,  and  having  invited  a  party  of  friends  to 
dine  with  him  in  London  on  the  following  day,  he  was 
actually  (owing  to  some  carelessness  of  the  compilers  of 
the  official  time-tables)  delayed  with  his  servants  and  horses 
for  one  hour  and  fifteen  minutes,  had  his  dinner  spoiled 
(and  his  temper  too),  and  had  been  obliged  to  stand  in  the 
open  air  for  one  hour  (probably  wrapped  up  comfortably  in 
the  richest  furs).  Imagine  an  English  gentleman,  even  as 
late  as  the  year  1825,  writing  from  Cologne  to  his  friends 
in  London,  and  inviting  them  to  dine  with  him  at  his  home 
in  the  latter  city,  on  the  following  day!  With  what  sad 
forebodings  they  would  have  tapped  their  "foreheads,  and 
with  what  haste  the  gentleman's  afflicted  relatives  would 
have  made  preparation  quietly  to  convey  him,  on  his  return, 
to  some  private  asylum  for  lunatics! 


CHAPTER  II. 


BEGINNINGS  IN  EUROPE. 

npHE  first  steam-locomotives  were  portentous  and 
uncanny-looking  creatures,  —  resembling  nothing  so 
much  as  gigantic  grasshoppers,  so  thickly  covered  were 
they  with  levers,  joints,  legs  and  arms.  The  earliest  loco- 
motives were  road-engines,  and  it  may  readily  be  imagined 
that  their  first  appearance  on  a  lonely  road  would  produce 
consternation  in  the  minds  of  the  simple-hearted  villagers 
and  farmers.  In  the  Patent  Museum  at  South  Kensington, 
London,  is  preserved  one  of  the  earliest  locomotive  engines, 
namely  that  of  Murdock,  assistant  of  James  Watt.  It  is 
one  of  the  "  grasshopper  "  engines.  One  dark  night  Mur- 
dock was  experimenting  with  his  new  machine  at  Redruth, 
in  Cornwall,  when,  by  some  accident,  it  escaped  from  his 
grasp  and  went  galloping  at  a  great  pace  down  a  lonely 
lane.  Now  it  chanced  that  a  venerable  clergyman  was 
taking  an  evening  walk  in  this  lane,  which  led  directly  to 
his  church.  Suddenly  he  saw  approaching  at  a  furious 
rate  of  speed  an  indescribable  monster,  of  legs,  arms, 
and  wheels,  whose  body  glowed  with  internal  fire,  while 
rapid  gasps  for  breath  seemed  to  indicate  that  it  was  suffer- 
ing the  agonies  of  death.  The  clergyman's  hair  actually 
stood  on  end:  with  fear,  and,  being  convinced  that  a  fiend 
from  hell  was  making  toward  him,  he  set  up  loud  cries  for 
help.    The  inventor  soon  appeared,  however,  and  assured 

6 


BEGINKIKGS  IK  EUROPE 


7 


the  good  man  that  the  machine  was  no  diabolical  creature, 
but  simply  a  runaway  locomotive. 

Coleridge  is  authority  for  the  following  similar  story 
about  a  road-engine  of  the  Cornish  inventor,  Richard 
Trevithick,  who  in  1804  first  applied  steam  power  to  the 
drawing  of  loads  on  a  railroad: 

As  Trevithick  and  an  assistant  named  Yivian  were 
steaming  along  the  road  between  Plymouth  and  Camborne, 
Yivian  caught  sight  of  a  closed  toll-bar  just  as  they  had 
battered  down  the  front  rails  of  a  gentleman's  garden  by 
rushing  against  it  with  their  engine.  "  Captain"  Vivian 
called  to  his  partner  to  slacken  speed ;  he  did  so  and  stopped 
close  by  the  gate,  which  was  opened  like  lightning  by  the 
gateman. 

"  What  have  us  got  to  pay?  "  asked  Yivian,  careful  as  to 
honesty,  if  reckless  as  to  grammar. 

«Na  —  na  —  na  —  na!"  stammered  the  poor  man, 
trembling  in  every  limb,  and  his  teeth  chattering  as  if 
he  had  the  ague. 

"  What  have  us  got  to  pay,  I  ask?  " 
»  Na  —  noth  —  nothing  to  pay !   My  de  —dear  Mr.  Devil, 
do  drive  on  as  fast  as  ever  you  can!    Nothing  to  pay!  " 

The  feverish  pulsations  of  the  steam-engine  quickened 
the  movements  of  trade;  the  product  of  the  cotton-mills 
was  doubled;  the  demand  for  rapid  transit  grew  more 
urgent,  and  numerous  and  quaint  were  the  mechanical 
motors  devised  by  sanguine  inventors.  It  was  for  many 
years  believed  that  road- locomotives  would  be  the  steam- 
vehicles  of  the  future,  and  such  men  as  Burstall,  Hill, 
Gurney,  Ogle,  Summers,  Sir  Charles  Dance,  and  Walter 
Hancock  gave  years  of  study  to  the  perfecting  of  their 
respective  machines.    Strange  monsters  went  puffing  about 


WO^BEKS  AISTD  CUEIOSITIES  OF  THE  KAILWAY, 


the  land  in  those  days.  In  1813  William  Brunton  patented 
a  railroad  locomotive  which  was  provided  with  legs  and 
feet  that  clattered  away  at  the  rear  of  the  machine  at  a 
great  rate.  Brunton  thought  that  the  wheels  would  not 
bite  the  rail  hard  enough  to  draw  heavy  loads  (especially  on 
inclines)  without  the  aid  of  legs  to  push  from  behind.  It 
was  not  then  known  that  the  bite  is  greater  in  proportion 
to  the  greater  weight  of  the  car  or  locomotive  —  one  of  the 
most  important  principles  in  railway  mechanics.  This 
device  of'  legs  to  assist  traction  was  applied  by  Goldsworthy 
Gurney  to  his  road-locomotives,  which  from  1827  to  1835 
were  in  very  successful  operation  in  the  neighborhood  of 
London,  where  they  ascended  the  highest  hills  with  ease. 
In  1831  one  of  his  carriages  ran  for  about  four  months 
between  Gloucester  and  Cheltenham;  and  in  1835  another 
ran  between  Glasgow  and  Paisley.  But  there  were  several 
explosions  of  these  road-engines,  and  with  the  rapid  growth 
of  the  railroad  idea,  the  other  method  of  locomotion  grad- 
ually dropped  out  of  sight.* 

The  story  of  the  origin  of  the  steam-locomotive  at  the 
coal  mines  of  Newcastle,  its  development  by  George  Steph- 
enson, and  first  application  on  an  extended  scale  to  the 
Stockton  and  Darlington  coal  railroad,  has  been  told  so 
often  and  so  well  by  Smiles  and  others,  that  it  would  be 
superfluous  to  dwell  minutely  upon  it  in  this  work.  The 
Darlington  road  was  projected  in  1817  by  the  Quaker, 
Edward  Pease  ("Owd  Neddy,"  as  the  miners  called  him), 
and  was  often  called  the  Quaker  line.  It  was  thirty- 
seven  miles  in  length,  and  was  opened  September  27,  1825. 

*  At  Maidstone  in  England,  however,  there  are  now  in  use  a  score  and  more 
of  road-locomotives,  which  do  heavy  "  trucking  "  over  the  streets  at  night  when 
there  is  no  danger  of  frightening  horses. 


BEGIKKIKGS  IK  EUKOPE. 


9 


The  road  cost  six  hundred  thousand  dollars.  No  passenger 
traffic  was  originally  thought  of,  but,  there  seeming  to  be 
quite  a  demand  for  a  passenger-car,  the  directors  deter- 
mined to  furnish  one,  and  accordingly  put  upon  the  road 
the  first  railroad  passenger-car  ever  built  (called  "  The 
Experiment").    It  was  a  rude  cabin  placed  upon  four 


"the  experiment." 


wheels.  A  row  of  seats  ran  along  each  side  of  the  interior, 
and  a  deal  table  was  fixed  in  the  centre.  The  passenger 
receipts  for  the  first  year  were  about  tHree  thousand 
dollars;  the  annual  passenger  receipts  of  all  the  English 
railroads  at  the  present  time  are  nearly  one  hundred 
million  dollars.  The  first  passenger  coaches  on  the  Stock- 
ton and  Darlington  road  were  drawn  each  by  a  single  horse, 
while  at  the  same  time  Stephenson's  engines  were  drawing 
the  coal  trains.  Afterward  the  passenger-cars  were  also 
drawn  by  steam-power.  The  immediate  successors  of  the 
"Experiment"  were  two  "new  and  elegant"  horse-cars 
called  the  "  Express "  and  the  "  Defence."     They  were 


10      WO^DEES  AHD  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  BAIL  WAY. 


coach-bodies  on  trucks,  carried  passengers  inside  and  out, 
had  a  lever-brake  reaching  up  to  the  coachman's  box,  and 
were  in  general  the  prototype  of  those  afterward  used  on 
the  Albany  and  Schenectady,  and  the  New  York  and  Harlem 
railroads  in  the  United  States  (see  Chapter  II).  From 
a  contemporary  Scottish  newspaper  we  learn  that,  consider- 
ing that  there  was  formerly  no  coach  at  all  on  either  of  the 
roads  to  which  the  railway  ran  parallel,  the  traffic  was 
thought  quite  wonderful.  "A  trade  and  intercourse  has 
arisen  out  of  nothing  and  nobody  knows  how."  It  is 
further  stated  that. "at  any  bends  of  the  road,  or  other 
place,  when  the  view  is  obstructed,  the  coachman  blows  a 
horn  to  give  warning  of  his  approach  to  any  wagons  or 
vehicles  that  may  be  coming  or  going  on  the  way;  and  in 
meeting  or  passing,  either  the  coach  or  the  vehicle  goes  off 
into  some  of  the  passing  places,  and  then  returns  into  the 
main  line." 

On  the  opposite  page  is  given  a  profile  view  of  one  of 
Stephenson's  steam  passenger-cars  a  fragile  vehicle  indeed 
when  compared  with  the  massive  cars  of  our  day.  The 
lower  hinged  doors  opened  into  receptacles  beneath  the 
seats  used-  for  the  stowing  of  luggage.  The  picture  is 
copied  from  a  drawing  sent  to  the  Boston  and  Lowell  rail- 
road by  Stephenson,  in  1835.  The  famous  engineer  was  at 
that  time  in  the  pay  of  the  Boston  and  Lowell  road,  and 
sent  over  this  drawing  with  a  number  of  others.  Mr.  J.  B. 
Winslow,  of  Boston,  to  whose  kindness  and  that  of  Mr.  E. 
H.  Talbott  the  author  is  indebted  for  the  use  of  the  picture, 
says:  "This  drawing  evidently  was  copied  from  one  that 
was  used  to  build  the  cars  from,  some  years  before  its  date 
(1832).  I  have  no  doubt  the  original  was  used  for  building 
the  first  passenger-car  ever  constructed." 


12      WOKDERS  AKD  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 


The  day  of  the  introduction  of  the  steam-engines  upon 
the  Darlington  road  was  celebrated  by  a  procession  of  cars 
and  locomotives,  and  by  general  festivities.  When  the 
time  came  for  firing  up  the  first  locomotive  (called  the 
"  Locomotion,"  or  "  Puffing  Billy"  ),  it  was  found  that  no 
tinder-box  was  at  hand.  Thereupon  one  of  the  employes 
drew  a  burning-glass  from  his  pocket,  and  obtained  fire 
from  the  sun.  This  act  strikes  the  mind  as  highly  poetical 
and  appropriate;  the  power  that  propelled  the  engine 
emanated  from  sun-made  coal,  and  the  fire  that  liberated 
the  power  was  also  of  solar  origin.  Thus,  as  the  ancients 
would  have  thought,  the  fire  was  pure  and  sacred,  and  with 
them  the  act  of  the  English  fireman  would  have  taken  the 
shape  of  a  sacred  and  solemn  rite.  But  times  change,  and 
customs  with  them. 

It  goes  without  saying  that  everything  connected  with 
the  first  railroad  was  of  a  rude  description.  There  were 
no  gates  across  turnpike  roads,  no  brakes  on  the  cars, 
and  no  signal-lamps.  One  kind  of  night-signal  used  by 
an  engineer  for  stopping  a  train  was  a  burning  tow-line 
kindled  by  a  shovelful  of  red-hot  cinders.  A  candle  stuck 
in  the  station  window  was  the  signal  to  stop,  and  its  absence 
meant  "  go  on."  The  cars  had  no  springs  and  no  buffers, 
and  the  jolting  was  something  awful.  The  Stephenson 
locomotives  at  this  time  had  the  steam-blast,  but  not  the 
multi-tubular  boiler. 

On  September  27,  1875,  the  semi-centennial  of  the  origin 
of  railways  was  celebrated  at  Darlington,  under  the  au- 
spices of  the  Directors  of  the  North-Eastern  Railway 
Company.  One  hundred  thousand  visitors  were  present  at 
the  Jubilee;  there  were  flags  and  cannon-firings,  a  banquet 


14      WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 


and  speeches,  and  an  exhibition  of  veteran  locomotives,  and 
other  quaint  relics  of  the  early  days. 

Before  passing  to  some  account  of  the  more  famous 
Liverpool  and  Manchester  railroad,  we  must  not  omit  a 
tribute  of  praise  to  Thomas  Gray,  of  Nottingham.    He  was 
the  first  to  agitate  the  question  of  passenger  railways.  The 
subject  was  his  hobby,  his  craze;  he  memorialized  all  prom- 
inent men,  wrote  in  all  the  journals,  and  bored  everybody 
nearly  to  death.     "  Put  him  in  a  strait  jacket,"  said  the 
" Edinburgh  Eeview";   "Such  persons  are  beneath  our 
notice,"   said   the   pompous   "Quarterly."  Nevertheless, 
Gray's  prophetic  work  on  railways  went  through  five 
editions  during  his  lifetime,  and  he  lived  to  see  his  idea 
triumphant.    But  such  was  the  irony  of  fate  that  he  was 
refused  employment  on  the  very  road  he  had  planned  and 
helped  to  bring  into  existence,  and  he  "  died  steeped  to  the 
lips  in  poverty." 

It  is  not  generally  known  that  the  first  railroads  of 
England  formed  a  step  in  the  evolution  of  means  of  rapid 
transportation  which  was  absolutely  demanded  by  the  most 
urgent  stress  of  circumstances.  Especially  was  this  true  of 
the  Liverpool  and  Manchester  road.  The  invention  of 
steam  spinning  machinery  had  doubled  the  trade  in  cotton 
every  twenty  years,  and,  as  a  consequence,  the  population 
of  Liverpool  and  Manchester  had  vastly  increased.  But  the 
means  of  transportation  were  utterly  insufficient.  There 
were  three  canals,  but  their  day  had  gone;  their  charges 
were  enormous,  their  monopoly  odious,  and  the  bearing  of 
their  directors  haughty  and  dictatorial.  The  streets  of 
Liverpool  were  blocked  up  with  timber  and  bales  of  cotton 
to  an  incredible  extent,  and  no  entreaties  of  merchants 
could  get  them  to  their  factories  and  mills.    It  often  took 


BEGIKKIKGS  IK  EUEOPE. 


15 


longer  to  get  goods  from  Liverpool  to  Manchester  (a 
distance  of  thirty  miles)  than  it  did  to  get  them  across  the 
Atlantic  Ocean  from  New  York. 

Then,  too,  the  demand  for  fast  mail  coaches  was  loud  and 
importunate.  Thirty  thousand  horses  were  killed  off  every 
year  in  the  attempt  to  make  them  carry  the  mails  at  the 
rate  of  ten  miles  an  hour;  there  are  many  cases  recorded 
where  horses  burst  the  heart,  or  snapped  a  leg  from  being 
over-driven.*  It  was  high  time  for  mechanical  transit.  It 
was  the  age  of  steam,  and  there  was  no  steam-travel;  the 
incongruity  was  soon  removed,  however,  and  the  world  saw 
a  railroad-system  developed  with  marvellous  rapidity;  with 
unhealthy  rapidity,  indeed,  and  feverish  speculation,  as  we 
shall  soon  see,  but  yet,  on  the  whole,  to  the  lasting  benefit 
of  the  nations  concerned. 

It  is  amusing  to  read  the  objections  that  were  made  to 
the  building  of  railways,  at  the  time  of  the  agitation  con- 
cerning the  construction  of  the  Liverpool  and  Manchester 
road.  It  was  affirmed  that  the  smoke  from  the  engine 
would  kill  all  the  birds;  the  sparks  would  certainly  set 
fire  to  fields  and  houses;  passengers  could  not  breathe  in 
a  train  going  so  rapidly,  or  they  would  be  made  worse 
than  sea-sick;  the  boiler  would,  burst;  the  railroad  would 
ruin  the  farmer,  kill  all  the  game,  and  produce  premature 
birth-pangs  in  women  and  the  lower  animals;  the  sacred 

*  Mr.  Eames  (of  the  White  Horse,  Fetter  Lane)  keeps  about  three  hundred 
horses;  he  finds  them  last  three  years  in  post-coaches,  and  as  long  again  at  a 
distance  from  London;  he  says  that  his  drivers  represent  the  "  crossing  hack- 
wards  and  forwards  through  the  gravel,  heaped  sometimes  in  the  middle  of  the 
roads  near  London,  as  tearing  the  horses'  hearts  out.1'— Quarterly  Review. 

It  appears  that  the  extra  demand  for  coach-horses  arises  out  of  the  new  reg- 
ulations of  the  post-office,  which  cause  the  death  of  two  horses,  on  an  average, 
in  three  journeys  of  two  hundred  miles.  —  Yorkshire  Gazette,  December  27, 
1821. 

The  average  life  of  the  street-car  horses  of  our  own  day  is  four  years. 


16      WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 

game  of  fox-hunting  would  be  destroyed ;  and  the  privileged 
castes  would  be  mingled  with  the  common  herd.  Stephen- 
son's tunnel  was  an  object  of  great  dread.  It  was  said  that 
"the  sudden  immersion  in  the  gloom  of  the  tunnel  and  the 
clash  of  reverberated  sounds  in  a  confined  space  combined 
to  produce  a  momentary  shudder,  an  idea  of  destruction,  a 
thrill  of  annihilation"!  (A  medical  committee  was,  how- 
ever, appointed,  and  they  reported  tunnels  to  be  in  no  way 
injurious  to  the  health.)  The  poet  Wordsworth  was  furious 
against  the  profane  innovation,  and  Ruskin  still  thinks  the 
railroad  to  be  the  invention  of  the  devil.  Another  seriouslv 
urged  objection  was  that  thousands  of  coachmen  and  inn- 
keepers would  be  thrown  out  of  employment.  There  was  a 
grain  of  sense  in  this  objection.  Only  a  few  acrid  old 
fanatics  rejoiced  in  the  approaching  downfall  of  the  Boni- 
faces. It  is  reported  that  a  certain  French  archbishop 
declared  that  railways  were  an  evidence  of  the  divine 
displeasure  against  innkeepers;  they  would  now  be  pun- 
ished for  having  supplied  meat  to  travellers  on  fast- days,  by 
seeing  said  travellers  carried  swiftly  past  their  doors. 

It  is  curious  to  read  of  the  incredulity  with  which  men 
listened  to  predictions  of  a  rapid  rate  of  speed  in  travelling. 
A  prominent  Liverpool  gentleman  said  that  if  it  should 
ever  be  proved  possible  for  a  locomotive  engine  to  go  ten 
miles  an  hour,  he  would  undertake  to  eat  a  stewed  engine- 
wheel  for  his  breakfast.  In  1671  Sir  Henry  Herbert  had 
said:  44 If  a  man  were  to  propose  to  convey  us  regularly  to 
Edinburgh,  in  coaches,  in  seven  days,  and  bring  us  back  in 
seven  more,  should  we  not  vote  him  to  Bedlam?"  But  if 
Sir  Henry  had  entertained  such  opinions  of  a  rate"  of  speed 
like  this,  what  must  have  been  the  opinion  of  conservative 
old  gentlemen  of  a  later  day,  when  told  of  cars  flying 


BEGDOTINGS  m  EUROPE. 


17 


through  the  air  at  forty  miles  an  hour?  Let  one  anecdote 
suffice  for  many  relating  to  this  topic: 

When  the  Liverpool  and  Manchester  railway  was  under 
discussion  in  Parliament,  George  Stephenson,  engineer  of  the 
road,  was  examined  by  a  special  committee.  The  leading 
counsel  of  the  promoters  of  the  railway  was  himself  a  little 
sceptical  about  the  wonders  promised  by  the  then  unknown 
engineer,  and  cautioned  him  nervously  and  earnestly  not  to 
claim  a  speed  of  over  fifteen  miles  an  hour.  But  a  member 
of  the  committee,  thinking  that  he  could  press  the  simple- 
hearted  witness  to  an  absurdity,  cross-examined  him  to  the 
following  effect: 

"  Well,  Mr.  Stephenson,  perhaps  you  could  go  seventeen 
miles  an  hour." 

The  engineer  promptly  answered,  "Yes." 

"  Perhaps  some  twenty  miles  might  be  reached." 

"  Yes,  certainly." 

The  member  thought  he  bad  hooked  his  fish. 

"  Twenty-five,  I  dare  say,  you  do  not  think  impossible." 

"  Certainly  not  impossible." 

"  Dangerous?  " 

"  Certainly  not." 

"  Nqw  tell  me,  Mr.  Stephenson,"  said  the  inquisitor  in  a 
tone  of  deprecatory  indignation,  "  will  you  say  that  you 
can  go  thirty  miles?" 

The  answer  was  as  before,  "Certainly." 

Upon  this  every  member  of  the  committee  leaned  back 
in  his  chair  and  roared  with  incredulous  laughter.  But 
George  built  his  road,  and  on  the  very  opening  day  attained 
a  speed  of  thirty-six  miles  an  hour. 

About  a  year  before  the  Liverpool  road  was  finished, 

occurred  the  famous  trial  of  engines  at  Rainhill  (October 
2 


18      WONDERS  AKD  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 


6,  1829).  Four  engines  were  entered  to  compete  for  the 
five  hundred  pound  prize  offered  by  the  Directors.  They 
were  the  "  Novelty,"  —  one  of  the  builders  of  which  was 
Ericsson,  afterward  constructor  of  our  iron-clad  monitors,— 
the  "  Sanspareil,"  the  "  Perseverance,"  and  the  "Rocket," — 
the  latter,  Stephenson's  engine  with  its  steam-blast  and 
multi-tubular  boiler.  The  "Rocket"  fulfilled  all  the  condi- 
tions,  and  obtained  the  prize ;  her  driver  that  day  was 
Charles  Fox,  the  future  builder  of  the  Crystal  Palace. 

The  public  opening  of  the  road  took  place  September 
15,  1830.  There  was  a  gay  cortege  of  eight  trains  drawn 
by  as  many  locomotives  —  the  latter  decorated  with  flags. 
The  people  were  en  fete,  and  lined  the  road  by  thousands; 
"ale  almost  flowed  in  the  streets";  "all  the  musical  in- 
struments for  hundreds  of  miles  around  were  got  together, 
and  were  scraped,  blown,  beaten,  and  twanged  at  once,  to 
an  accompaniment  of  church  bells  and  booming  cannon." 
For  the  nobility  and  the  Duke  of  Wellington  there  was  a 
large  and  elegant  car,  and  for  the  Directors  and  the 
musicians  other  cars  only  less  fine.  Each  train  of  cars 
was  distinguished  by  its  own  color  in  the  matter  of  flags 
and  streamers.  The  pleasure  of  this  historical  day  was 
not,  however,  unmixed.  Poor  Mr.  Huskisson,  member  of 
Parliament  from  Liverpool,  was  run  over  and  killed  by 
the  "Rocket,"  and  there  was  continual  apprehension  of  a 
violent  demonstration  against  the  Duke  of  Wellington, 
who  was  at  that  time  Prime  Minister,  and  had  obstinately 
refused  to  listen  to  the  cry  for  Parliamentary  reform. 
Besides,  it  was  a  gloomy  time,  socially;  the  reaction  of 
the  Napoleonic  wars  was  at  its  height,  the  laboring 
classes  were  suffering,  incendiarism  was  rife,  and  popular 
discontent  was  deep  and  ominous.    But  the  only  demon- 


BEGINNINGS  IN  EUROPE. 


19 


stration  at  the  railway  celebration  consisted  in  the  pelting 
of  the  Duke's  car,  and  in  various  tokens  of  discontent 
exhibited  along  the  line  of  the  road.  Altogether  the  day 
and  the  spectacle  were  of  surpassing  interest,  and  deserve 
to  be  immortalized  by  pencil  and  pen  for  the  admiration 
of  posterity.* 

Turning  now  to  France,  we  find  there  the  same 
scene  enacted  as  in  England, — the  same  stupidity  encoun- 
tered, and  the  same  enthusiasm  manifested  over  the  final 
success.  In  1830  M.  Auguste  Perdonnet  was  treated  as  a 
madman  for  delivering  at  L'Ecole  Centrale  in  Paris  a 
course  of  lectures  on  railroads,  and  maintaining  that  the 
introduction  of  them  would  bring  about  changes  equal  to 
those  introduced  by  the  invention  of  printing.  But  the 
first  French  railway  (the  St.  Germain)  was  built  seven 
years  later,  and  even  M.  Thiers,  on  returning  from  a  visit 
to  England,  admitted  that  railways  presented  some  advan- 
tages for  the  transportation  of  passengers,  so  long  as  their 
use  was  limited  to  a  few  short  lines  centring  in  a  great 

*Mrs.  Prances  Kemble,  who  was  at  the  height  of  her  prosperity  at  the  time 
here  spoken  of,  was  invited  by  Stephenson,  shortly  before  the  formal  celebra- 
tion, to  take  a  ride  on  his  locomotive.  Of  the  famous  engineer,  she  says:  "He 
was  rather  a  stern-featured  man,  with  a  dark  and  deeply  marked  countenance; 
his  speech  was  strongly  inflected  with  his  native  Northumbrian  accent,  but  the 
fascination  of  that  story  told  by  himself,  while  his  tame  dragon  flew  panting 
along  his  iron  pathway  with  us,  passed  the  first  reading  of  the  'Arabian 
Nights,'  the  incidents  of  which  it  almost  seemed  to  recall.  He  was  wonder- 
fully condescending  and  kind,  in  answering  all  the  questions  of  my  eager  igno- 
rance, and  I  listened  to  him  with  eyes  brimful  of  warm  tears  of  sympathy  and 
enthusiasm,  as  he  told  me  of  all  his  alternations  of  hope  and  fear,  of  his  many 
trials  and  disappointments,  related  with  fine  scorn  how  the  '  Parliament  men ' 
had  badgered  and  baffled  him  with  their  book  knowledge,  and  how,  when  at 
last  they  had  smothered  the  irrepressible  prophecy  of  his  genius  in  the  quaking 
depths  of  Chat  Moss,  he  had  exclaimed,  'Did  ye  ever  see  a  boat  float  on  the 
water?  I  will  make  my  road  float  upon  Chat  Moss! '  "  Mrs.  Kemble  says  she 
was  much  pleased  with  "the  snorting  little  engine."  Stephenson  explained 
many  things  to  her,  assured  her  that  he  would  make  a  fine  engineer  of  her,  and 
the  result  of  the  whole  was  that  she  "  fell  horribly  in  love  with  him." 


20      WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OE  THE  RAILWAY. 


city  like  Paris;  but  the  public  did  not  need  great  trunk 
lines.  When  he  was  asked  for  a  charter  for  a  railroad  to 
Rouen  from  Paris,  he  refused,  saying  that  they  would 
throw  him  out  of  the  tribune  if  he  did  so.  "  Iron  is  too 
dear  in  France,"  said  M.  Passy,  minister  of  finance.  "The 
surface  of  the  country  is  too  broken,"  said  the  deputy,  M. 
Allier.  "The  tunnels  would  be  injurious  to  the  health  of 
passengers,"  said  M.  Arago. 

The  Paris  and  St.  Germain  railway  (eleven  miles  long) 
was  opened  in  1837.  Intense  was  the  excitement  of  the 
volatile  Frenchmen.  "Triomphe  nierveilleitse ! 1 "  "Plaisir 
inconnn!"  "Amotion  sans  egall" — such  were  the  expres- 
sions in  everybody's  mouth.  On  the  opening  day  the  train 
(says  the  London  "Times"  of  that  year)  "started  at  twelve, 
to  the  instant,  and  then  was  the  clatter  of  voices  raised 
tenfold.  '  II  part —  ce  coursier  de  feu  et  de  fumee!  He 
snorts!  he  snorts!  His  prodigious  tail  of  vapor  floats  in 
the  firmament!  La  voila!'  Even  when  the  engine  had 
attained  its  extreme  velocity,  the  rattling  of  tongues 
was  continued,  one  person  shouting  into  a  second's  ear, 
and  a  third  shrieking  at  the  extreme  pitch  of  his  voice. 
'  Cheval  magnifique!  Noble  and  intrepid  horse  which  noth- 
ing can  stop!  He  devours  the  way  before  him  —  he  snorts! 
He  is  clothed  with  thunder,  like  the  horse  of  Job!  Cor- 
bleu!  what  a  delicious  motion — •n'est-ce  pas?  Out,  c'est 
le  plus  grand  plaisir  du  monde! '" 

But  the  English  are  less  sanguine  than  the  Latins.  We 
find,  in  private  journals  written  at  the  time,  a  few  records 
that  reveal  a  most  reprobate  state  of  mind  in  the  case  of 
certain  old  gentlemen.  Here  are  the  notes  of  one  who 
travelled  over  the  first  two  English  lines:  —  * 

*  From  "  Notes  and  Queries,1'  August  1,  1868. 


BEGINNINGS  IN  EUEOPE. 


21 


"Monday,  October  11,  1830,  Darlington. — Walked  to 
the  railroad  which  comes  within  half  a  mile  of  the  town. 
Saw  a  steam-engine  drawing  about  twenty-five  wagons, 
each  containing  about  two  tons  and  a  half  of  coals.  A 
single  horse  draws  four  such  wagons.  I  went  to  Stockton 
at  four  o'clock  by  coach  on  the  railroad;  one  horse  draws 
about  twenty- four  passengers.  I  did  not  like  it  at  all, 
for  the  road  is  very  ugly  in  appearance,  and  being  only 
one  line,  with  occasional  turns  for  passing,  we  were  some- 
times obliged  to  wait,  and  at  other  times  to  be  drawn 
back,  so  that  we  were  full  two  hours  going  eleven  miles, 
and  they  are  often  more  than  three  hours.  There  is  no 
other  conveyance,  as  the  cheapness  has  driven  the  stage- 
coaches off  the  road.  I  only  paid  one  shilling  for  eleven 
miles.  The  motion  was  very  unpleasant  —  a  continual 
jolting  and  disagreeable  noise." 

On  October  27,  1830,  the  same  gentleman  made  a  rail- 
road-journey from  Manchester  to  Liverpool,  and  has  left 
the  following  remarks  upon  it : 

"We  were  two  hours  and  a  half  going  to  Liverpool 
(about  thirty-two  miles),  and  I  must  think  the  advantages 
have  been  a  good  deal  overrated,  for,  prejudice  apart,  I 
think  most  people  will  allow  that  expedition  is  the  only 
real  advantage  gained;  the  road  itself  is  ugly,  though 
curious  and  wonderful  as  a  work  of  art.  Near  Liverpool 
it  is  cut  very  deeply  through  rock;  and  there  is  a  long 
tunnel,  which  leads  into  a  yard  where  omnibuses  wait  to 
convey  passengers  to  the  inns.  The  tunnel  is  too  low  for 
the  engines  at  present  in  use,  and  the  carriages  are  drawn 
through  it  by  donkeys.  The  engines  are  calculated  to 
draw  fifty  tons.  *  ■  *  *  I  cannot  say  that  I  at  all 
liked  it;  the  speed  was  too  great  to  be  pleasant,  and 


22      WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 


makes  you  rather  giddy,  and  certainly  it  is  not  smoother 
and  easier  than  a  good  turnpike-road.  When  the  carriages 
stop  or  go  on,  a  very  violent  jolting  takes  place,  from  the 
ends  of  the  carriages  jostling  together.  I  have  heard 
many  say  they  prefer  a  horse-coach,  but  the  majority  are 
in  favor  of  the  railroad,  and  they  will  no  doubt  knock 
up  the  coaches." 

A  good  companion-piece  to  the  foregoing  is  the  follow- 
ing from  the  journal  of  Samuel  Breck,  an  old  Bostonian 
(United  States):* 

"  July  22,  1835. — This  morning  at  nine  o'clock  I  took 
passage  in  a  railroad  car  (from  Boston)  for  Providence. 
Five  or  six  other  cars  were  attached  to  the  locomotive,  and 
uglier  boxes  I  do  not  wish  to  travel  in.  They  were  made 
to  stow  away  some  thirty  human  beings,  who  sit  cheek  by 
jowl  as  best  they  can.  Two  poor  fellows,  who  were  not 
much  in.  the  habit  of  making  their  toilet,  squeezed  me 
into  a  corner,  while  the  hot  sun  drew  from  their 
garments  a  villanous  compound  of  smells,  made  up  of 
salt-fish,  tar,  and  molasses.  By-and-by,  just  twelve  —  only 
twelve  —  bouncing  factory  girls  were  introduced,  who  were 
going  on  a  party  of  pleasure  to  Newport.  '  Make  room 
for  the  ladies ! '  bawled  out  the  superintendent.  '  Come, 
gentlemen,  jump  up  on  the  top;  plenty  of  room  there.' 
4  I'm  afraid  of  the  bridge  knocking  my  brains  out,'  said  a 
.  passenger.  Some  made  one  excuse,  and  some  another. 
For  my  part,  I  flatly  told  him  that  since  I  had  belonged 
to  the  corps  of  Silver  Grays  I  had  lost  my  gallantry,  and 
did  not  intend  to  move.  The  whole  twelve  were,  however, 
introduced,  and  soon  made  themselves  at  home,  sucking 

*  Quoted  by  Charles  F.  Adams,  Jr.,  in  his  valuable  work  on  "Railroads: 
Their  Origin  and  Problems. 11 


BEGIKKIKGS  IN  EUROPE. 


23 


lemons,  and  eating  green  apples.  *  *  *  The  rich 
and  the  poor,  the  educated  and  the  ignorant,  the  polite 
and  the  vulgar,  all  herd  together  in  this  modern  improve- 
ment in  travelling.  *  *  *  And  all  this  for  the  sake 
of  doing  very  uncomfortably  in  two  days  what  would  be 
done  delightfully  in  eight  or  ten." 

The  sentiments  expressed  in  the  foregoing  citations 
were  decidedly  exceptional,  if  we  can  judge  from  the 
records.  As  has  been  intimated,  the  financial  success  of 
railways  was  so  immediate  and  the  novelty  of  the  thing 
was  so  fascinating,  that  speculation  ran  riot  in  railroad 
stock,  and,  in  short,  produced  the  astounding  "Railway 
Manias"  that  are  now  a  part  of  history.  A  fascinating 
volume  could  be  made  on  this  subject  alone.  The  best  ac- 
counts that  the  writer  of  these  lines  has  met  with,  are 
contained  in  "Frazer's  Magazine"  for  1844  and  1845,  in 
Francis'  "History  of  Kailways,"  and  in  the  "Banker's 
Magazine." 

The  first  railway  mania  was  in  1836.  The  whole  coun- 
try was  wild  over  the  construction  of  new  lines.  Roads 
were  projected  between  the  most  insignificant  places.  Com- 
pany after  company  came  into  existence, —  many  of  them 
bogus  ones, —  and  swindlers  and  adventurers  obtained  fab- 
ulous amounts  of  gold  from  the  coffers  of  credulous  in- 
vestors. In  Durham,  one  projector  began  three  railroads 
all  running  in  parallel  lines.  Other  schemes  were  equally 
ridiculous.  One  man  proposed  to  propel  his  engines  by 
sails,  and  induced  a  company  to  try  them;  another  was 
confident  that  he  could  propel  a  locomotive  with  rockets 
at  a  speed  of  one  hundred  miles  an  hour.  Another  still 
invented  a  wooden  track  to  be  raised  on  stilts  so  as  to 
allow  the  passage  of  traffic  below. 


24     WONDERS  AHD  CUBIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 


"But  soon  a  panic  came  over  the  town, 
Heigho!  says  Reilly, 
Soon  a  panic  came  over  the  town, 

And  the  small  men  were  done  most  excessively  brown, 
Wily,  slily,  gammon  and  bubble ! 
Heigho!  says  Misther  Reilly." 

The  bubble  burst,  and  England  was  filled  with  distress. 
Great  firms  failed  by  the  score.  One  hundred  thousand 
laborers  in  Manchester,  Glasgow,  and  Paisley  were  thrown 
out  of  employment  for  months,  and  the  receipts  of  the 
custom  house  sank  nearly  one  million  pounds  in  a  single 
quarter. 

The  delusion  and  madness  of  the  great  mania  of  1844 
and  1845  were  even  more  widely  extended.  The  railway 
investments  made  in  the  years  from  1830  to  1844  had  had 
the  effect  of  establishing  such  lines  as  were  most  urgently 
needed;  and  yet  the  stock  of  even  these  lines  had  not  been 
rated  at  a  premium  until  1843.  In  the  spring  of  1844 
the  mania  began.  Two  hundred  and  fifty-two  new  roads 
were  projected.  In  1845  the  stock  of  six  hundred  pro- 
jected railroad  lines  was  in  the  market,  the  capital  required 
for  all  of  which  amounted  to  two  thousand  millions  of  dol- 
lars! In  1845  no  less  than  thirty-two  railway  journals  were 
started,  and  of  them  all  only  four  were  in  existence  at 
the  close  of  1846!  "Every  nook  and  corner  of  England 
which  with  any  show  of  decency  could  be  described  in 
public  print  as  { an  important  district,  abounding  in  traffic,' 
etc.,  was  forthwith  occupied  by  an  incipient  railway  com- 
pany." In  Scotland  and  Ireland  the  fever  was  almost  as 
bad.  In  the  rural  districts  railway  steam-engines  on  the 
atmospheric  plan  were  not  only  to  operate  the  railway 
lines,  but  employ  their  surplus  power  in  impregnating 
the  earth  with  carbonic  acid  and  other  gases,  so  that  veg- 


BEGINNINGS  IN  EUROPE. 


25 


etation  might  be  forced  forward  in  spite  of  the  ordinary 
vicissitudes  of  weather,  and  corn  grow  atf  railway  speed. 
"  Even  the  caution  of  aged  spinsters  is  giving  way,"  says 
a  contemporary  writer;  "they  no  longer  look  upon  the 
railway  schemes  as  a  mockery  and  a  snare ;  but,  fired  by 
the  occasional  paragraphs  of  the  penny-a-liners  in  the 
papers,  that  Mr.  So-and-so  has  made  so  many  ten  thou- 
sands by  one  investment,  and  so  many  hundred  thousands 
by  another,  they  begin  to  think  they  ought  to  seek  a  par- 
ticipation in  this  easily  acquired  wealth,  and  talk  to  their 
brokers  of  selling  out  of  consols  and  purchasing  of  '  scrip.'' " 
The  extent  to  which  the  craze  had  infected  the  women  is 
well  shown  also  in  a  vivacious  article  published  in  a  con- 
temporary journal  ("  Bentley's  Miscellany"  for  1845): 

"  'Have  you  got  any  Spitzbergen  and  Patagonia?' 

" '  I  am  sorry  to  say  that  I  have.' 

"  '  Why  so?  they  are  at  two  premium.' 

" 4  But  I  bought  at  three  and  a  half.' 

"  '  Don't  be  afraid;  hold  on.' 

"  '  Hold  on !  I  can't  help  myself.  There  is  actually  no 
business  doing  in  them/ 

" 1  The  surest  sign  that  they  are  to  have  a  sudden  and 
tremendous  rise.' 
.  When?' 

"  4  At  the  proper  time.    Hold  on!' 

"  This  hint  was  given  to  me  by  a  woman  —  one  of  con- 
sideration,—  with  a  look  and  tone  that  would  indicate  a 
knowledge  of  things  behind  the  curtain.  I  hope  that  she 
knows  a  move  or  two  in  the  chequered  game;  if  not,  as  far 
as  I  am  concerned,  it  will  not  be  of  much  consequence.  I 
shall  pay  for  my  lesson,  and  that's  all.  Small  men  ought 
to  stick  to  their  trade  of  basket  making.    And  I  shall 


26      WOKDEKS  AND  CUKIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 

profit  by  my  lesson,  you  may  depend  upon  it.  4  Une  fois 
philosophe;  deux  fois  joueur  determine.'' 

"  Perhaps  the  men  think  they  have  the  .  game  all  to 
themselves;  that  they  alone  are  railroad  mad.  If  they  do, 
they  are  grievously  mistaken.  What  is  it  that  makes  Lon- 
don by  far  less  dull  just  now  than  it  usually  is  during  the 
autumn?  Numbers  of  the  beau  sexe  have  remained  be- 
hind to  look  after  the  main  point,  for  emphatically  is 
railroad  speculation  considered  the  main  point  amongst, 
I  am  sorry  to  say,  too  many  of  them  at  this  moment. 
Paris,  for  the  same  reason,  has  been  scarcely  more  gay  at 
any  season  of  the  year  than  the  present.  A  certain  fash- 
ionable and  fascinating  marchioness  (an  Englishwoman, 
too),  a  resident  of  the  gay  capital  of  delights,  won  twenty- 
five  thousand  pounds  there  a  few  weeks  back  in  one  belle 
swoop.  You  would  like  to  know  how  she  did  it.  A  brill- 
iant company  were  assembled  at  the  hotel  of  a  Eussian 
nobleman  in  the  Faubourg  St.  Honore;  and  between  the 
pauses  of  the  danse,  a  distinguished  singer  of  the  opera 
was  entertaining  the  guests  with  a  favorite  air  from 
'Norma,' — it  might  be  from  'II  Barbiere,'  or  'Don  Gio- 
vanni,' or  it  might  not.  All  was  breathless  attention, 
and  intense  delight.  No!  not  all.  The  young  Marchion- 
ess of   occupied  a  fauteuil  in  a  corner  of  the  salon. 

The  air  was  beautiful  — 

"  'She  heard  it,  but  she  heeded  not  — her  eyes 
Were  with  her  heart,  and  that  was  far  away,' 

very  far  away  —  in  the  share-market!  for  even  into  such 
a  gentle  bosom,  and  amidst  such  a  scene,"  the  ruling  pas- 
sion of  the  age, —  call  it  avarice,  gambling,  what  you  will, 
—  could  enter  and  assert  its  empire. 

"  '  I  have  got  a  better  song  for  your  ladyship  than  even 


BEGINNINGS  IN  EUROPE. 


27 


Mario's  song,'  said  a  young  and  gallant  cavalier,  approach- 
ing her  softly,  and  seating  himself  on  an  unoccupied  couch 
beside  her. 

"  '  What  is  it?  '  said  the  Marchioness  hastily. 

"  '  Within  the  last  hour  the  King  has  expressed  to  the 
minister  his  approval  of  the  Great  Northern  line.  Hushl 
don't  speak  or  appear  agitated;  we  may  be  observed.1 

"'Was  R  there?1 

"'Yes!— -closeted  for  two  hours  with  you  know  whom; 
and  he  left  the  palace  about  a  minute  or  two  before  me 
with  a  joy  in  his  face  that  I  shall  never  forget.  It  spoke 
millions.  You  must  see  him  to-morrow  early ;  for  the 
news  will  be  over  the  town  before  evening,  and  the  appli- 
cations will  be  innumerable.1 

'"To-morrow!  —  to-night! 1  And  in  a  few  moments,  her 
Ladyship's  carriage  having  been  ordered,  she  left  for  the 
house  pf  the  great  financier. 

"It  was  in  vain  that  porter  and  portress,  valet  and 
butler,  major-domo  and  secretary,  opposed  the  entree  of 
the  fair  besieger.    Stop  a  woman,  indeed,  when  she  ivill  go 
ahead!  — stop  a  house  on  fire  with  a  single  bucket  of  water! 
She  made  her  way  to  the  sanctum  sanctorum  —  the  bureau 
of  bureaux.    It  was  not  her  first  time.    Plutus  was  not 
petrified;  he  knew  the  goddess  well.    He  knew,  too,  that 
she  must  be  obeyed;   so,  to  save  time,  every  moment  of 
which  was  worth  a  diamond  to  him  that  night,  he  obeyed 
the  commands  of  his  fair  tyrant.  She  arranged  for  a  pretty 
considerable  transaction,  and  departed  to  sleep  happily  on 
her  pillow. 

"  From  the  titled  dame  to  the  actress,  even  to  the  gri- 
sette,  all  the  women  are  playing  the  railroad  game  in  Paris. 
In  London,  if  things  are  not  going  on  pari  passu,  at  the 


28      WOKDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 

same  mail- train  pace,  amongst  the  female  speculators,  they 
are  going  on  fast  enough,  Heaven  knows! "  * 

An  indication  of  the  rapidity  with  which  the  delusion 
had  pervaded  all  classes  in  England  is  afforded  by  the  num- 
ber of  witnesses  who  were  brought  up  to  London  to  testify 
to  the  desirability  of  such  and  such  a  railroad,  through  this 
or  that  region.  There  were  thousands  of  these  witnesses  in 
town,  and  the  service  of  the  best  hotels,  with  a  guinea  a 
day,  naturally  inclined  them  to  rose-colored  views  of  the 
particular  project  they  were  asked  to  favor. 

It  was  delicious  to  listen  to  the  debate  of  two  crack 
engineers  pitted  against  each  other  in  the  service  of  rival 
lines.  If  a  mountain  stood  in  the  way  of  your  sanguine 
engineer,  he  would  plunge  fearlessly  through  it,  discover  in 
its  bowels  minerals  of  surpassing  value,  and  come  out  safe 
and  sound  on  the  opposite  side,  "  as  though  he  had  been 
perforating  a  gigantic  cheese  instead  of  hammering  his 
path  through  whinstone  coeval  with  creation."  If  a  lake 
stood  in  his  way  he  would  be  sworn  that  to  drain  it  would 
be  of  immense  advantage  to  the  abuttors,  and  he  was  "in- 
dignant at  the  supposition  that  any  human  being  could  be 
besotted  enough  to  prefer  the  prospect  of  a  budding  garden 
to  a  clean  double  pair  of  rails  beneath  his  bedroom  window, 
with  a  jolly  train  steaming  it  along  at  the  rate  of  some  fifty 
miles  an  hour." 

Of  course  among  so  many  speculators  and  manipulators, 
some  became  enormously  rich.  The  great  hero  of  the  day 
was  George  Hudson,  of  York,  the  prototype  of  modern 
"  Railway  Kings."  During  his  brief  reign  he  was  a  uni- 
versal favorite;  a  man  of  tremendous  energy,  contagious 

*  Thackeray  gives  another  ludicrous  picture  of  railway  speculation  in  the 
"Diary  of  C.  Jeames  de  laPluche,  Esq." 


BEGI20TIHGS  m  EUROPE. 


29 


enthusiasm  and  convincing  eloquence.  When  he  under- 
took to  push  a  railroad,  it  was  understood  that  it  would  be 
successful;*  the  choicest  aristocracy  of  England  sought  his 
presence;  it  was  reported  with  delight  that  his  empire 
extended  over  one  thousand  miles  of  railroad ;  his  suddenly- 
acquired  wealth  was  enormous  (he  made  five  hundred 
thousand  dollars  in  one  day),  and  his  benefactions  gener- 
ously large.  A  fine  arithmetician,  he  would  lean  his  head 
back  on  his  chair,  cover  his  eyes  with  his  hands,  and  arrange 
expenses  and  calculate  dividends  and  interest  with  marvel- 
lous accuracy.  He  had  a  heavy  frame,  a  piercing  gray  eye, 
gray  and  scanty  hair,  a  broad  and  wrinkled  face,  harsh  and 
severe  in  expression,  but  lighted  up  at  times  by  a  winning 
smile.  When  the  crash  came,  in  the  tag-end  of  1845,  Hud- 
son's brief  summer  sun  of  glory  set  in  clouds;  he  was 
called  "  a  stain  upon  the  nation,"  his  accounts  were  said  to 
show  crooked  transactions  involving  thousands  of  pounds. 
Like  so  many  of  his  American  brethren  of  a  later  date,  he 
kept  no  books  and  retained  no  copies  of  his  letters,  so  that 
it  is  really  difficult  to  fix  the  precise  amount  of  blame  to  be 
attached  to  him.  But  the  general  opinion  of  those  who 
have  estimated  his  character  is  that  he  was  guilty  of  moral 
obliquity  and  of  rash  investments  of  money,  although  his 
railroads  were  laid  in  well  chosen  localities,  and  ultimately 
proved  successful. 

*  Listen  to  Carlyle's  sarcasm:  "The  practical  English  mind,  contemplating 
its  divine  Hudson,  says  with  what  remainder  of  reverence  is  in  it:  4  Yes,  you 
are  something  like  the  Ideal  of  a  Man ;  *  *  *  You  find  a  dying  railway ; 
you  say  to  it,  Live,  blossom  anew  with  scrip ;—  and  it  lives  and  blossoms  into 
umbrageous  scrip,  to  enrich  with  golden  apples,  surpassing  those  of  the  Hes- 
perides,  the  hungry  souls  of  men.  Diviner  miracle  what  God  ever  did?  Hud- 
son, though  I  mumble  about  my  thirty-nine  articles,  and  the  service  Of  other  di- 
vinities,—Hudson  is  my  God,  and  to  him  I  will  sacrifice  this  twenty-pound  note; 
if  perhaps  he  will  be  propitious  to  me.1 11  —  Latter-Day  Pamphlets,  No.  VII. 


CHAPTER  III. 


THE  FIRST  AMERICAN  RAILROADS. 

AMERICA  not  only  ranks  first  among  the  nations  in 
the  development  and  extension  of  the  railroad,  but  in 
this  country  the  origin  of  the  institution  was  entirely  inde- 
pendent of  that  in  England.  We  can  match  Richard  Trev- 
ithick  with  Oliver  Evans,  of  Philadelphia;  and  Thomas 
Gray  with  Colonel  John  Stevens,  of  Hoboken.  Our  first 
locomotives  were  entirely  home-made,  and  as  quaint  and 
curious  as  they  were  unique.  In  short,  the  fertile  genius 
of  the  American  seized  upon  the  locomotive  from  the  very 
start  as  just  the  tool  needed  for  the  rapid  conquest  of  the 
Continent,  and  new- world  railway  appliances  are  now  con- 
fessed to  be  unsurpassed  in  ingenuity  and  efficiency. 

In  the  very  year  that  Trevithick  finished  his  Pen-y-dar- 
ran  locomotive,  Oliver  Evans  traversed  the  streets  of  Phila- 
delphia with  a  steam-wagon,  or  boat  on  wheels,  which  he 
called  the  "Oruktor  Amphibolis."  Evans  has  been  called 
the  Watts  of  America,  on  account  of  his  numerous  inven- 
tions of  steam-  machinery.  In  1813  he  published  a  little 
volume  in  which  he  made  the  following  remarkable 
prophecy: 

"  The  time  will  come  when  people  will  travel  in  stages 
moved  by  steam-engines  from  one  city  to  another,  almost  as 
fast  as  birds  can  fly,  fifteen  or  twenty  miles  an  hour. 

"Passing  through  the  air  with  such  velocity,  changing 

30 


THE  FIEST  AMEKICAK  BAILKOADS. 


31 


the  scenes  in  such  rapid  succession,  will  be  the  most  exhila- 
rating exercise. 

"  A  carriage  will  set  out  from  Washington  in  the  morn- 
ing, the  passengers  will  breakfast  in  Baltimore,  dine  at 
Philadelphia,  and  sup  at  New  York  the  same  day. 

"  To  accomplish  this,  two  sets  of  railways  will  be  laid 
(so  nearly  level  as  not  to  deviate  more  than  two  degrees 
from  a  horizontal  line),  made  of  wood  or  iron,  on  smooth 
paths  of  broken  stone  or  gravel,  with  a  rail  to  guide  the 
carriages,  so  that  they  may  pass  each  other  in  different 
directions,  and  travel  by  night  as  well  as  by  day;  and  the 
passengers  will  sleep  in  these  stages  as  comfortably  as 
they  now  do  in  steam  stage  boats. 

"  Twenty  miles  per  hour  is  about  thirty-two  feet  per 
second,  and  the  resistance  of  the  air  will  then  be  about  one 
pound  to  the  square  foot;  but  the  body  of  the  carriages 
will  be  shaped  like  a  swift-swimming  fish,  to  pass  easily 
through  the  air.    *    *    *  ' 

"  The  United  States  will  be  the  first  nation  to  make  this 
discovery,  and  to  adopt  the  system,  and  her  wealth  and 
power  will  rise  to  an  unparalleled  height." 

This  foreshadowing  of  the  railroad  is  even  more  remark- 
able than  that  of  old  Erasmus  Darwin,  embodied  in  the 
well  known  lines: 

"Soon  shall  thy  arm,  imconquered  steam,  afar 
Drag  the  slow  barge,  or  drive  the  rapid  car." 

Darwin's  "rapid  car"  was  only  a  "fiery  chariot,1'  as  he 
called  it,  or  steam  locomotive  for  common  roads.  As  to  the 
prophecy  of  "Mother  Shipton," 

"Carriages  without  horses  shall  go, 
And  accidents  fill  the  world  with  woe,1' 

it  is  sad  to  have  to  admit  that  it  is  an  unblushing  forgery. 


32      WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 

The  real  "  Mother  Shipton,"  it  is  now  known,  is  a  certain 
Charles  Hindley,  of  London,  who  about  1867  forged  the 
prophecies  which  he  published  to  the  world  under  the  ficti- 
tious name. 

Colonel  John  Stevens,  of  Hoboken,  shares  with  Oliver 
Evans  and  Thomas  Gray  the  honor  of  being  the  first  to 
propose  plans  for  steam  railroads  for  passengers  and 
freight.  In  1812,  when  the  only  locomotive  in  the  world 
was  that  of  Trevithick,  he  wrote  to  the  New  York  Commis- 
sioners for  the  Improvement  of  Internal  Navigation  (the 
chairman  of  whom  was  Gouverneur  K.  Morris)  to  this  effect  : 
"Let  a  railway  of  timber  be  formed,  by  the  nearest  practi- 
cable route  between  Lake  Erie  and  Albany,  the  angle  of 
elevation  in  no  part  to  exceed  one  degree,  or  such  an  eleva- 
tion, whatever  it  may  be,  as  will  admit  of  wheel  carriages, 
to  remain  stationary,  whenever  no  power  is  exerted  to  pro- 
pel them  forward.  This  railway  throughout  its  course  to 
be  supported  on  pillars  raised  from  three  to  five  or  six  feet 
above  the  surface  of  the  ground.  The  carriage  wheels  of 
cast  iron,  the  rims  flat,  with  projecting  flanges,  to  fit  on  the 
surface  of  the  railways.  The  moving  power  to  be  a  steam- 
engine  nearly  similar  in  construction  to  the  one  on  board 
the  'Juliana,'  a  ferryboat  plying  between  this  city  and 
Hoboken." 

Colonel  Stevens  said,  also,  that  if  the  Indian  proa  could 
be  driven  through  the  water  at  the  rate  of  twenty  miles  an 
hour,  he  saw  no  reason  why  locomotives  might  not  move  at 
the  rate  of  one  hundred  miles  an  hour,  on  smooth  rails. 
But  the  commissioners  objected  to  the  cost,  and  urged  the. 
then  unexploded  theory  that  the  locomotive  would  not  have 
grip,  or  bite,  enough  to  draw  a  heavy  load.    Colonel  Ste- 


THE  FIRST  AMERICAN  RAILROADS. 


33 


vens  replied  that  his  road  could  be  tested  at  an  expense  of 
about  three  thousand  dollars.    But  nothing  was  done. 

As  nearly  everybody  interested  in  railroads  is  aware, 
the  first  actual  iron  road  in  the  United  States  was  the  old 
"Granite  railroad"  of  Quincy,  Massachusetts.    It  was  con- 
structed in  1826  by  Gridley  Bryant,  and  received  great 
financial  aid  from  Thomas  Handasyd  Perkins,  of  Boston. 
The  enterprise  excited  deep  interest  throughout  the  country, 
and  the  road  is  referred  to  as  a  model  in  all  the  early 
papers  and  legislative  documents  relating  to  the  first  rail- 
roads.   Bryant  had  closely  studied  the  railroads  of  George 
Stephenson,  but  was  himself  an  inventor  of  new  railroad 
appliances,  such  as  the  switch,  portable-derrick,  and  eight- 
wheeled  car;  all  of  which  were  first  used  on  the  Quincy 
railroad.     Bryant's  claim  to  the  invention  of  the  eight- 
wheeled  car  was  unsuccessfully  disputed  in  the  courts  by 
Koss  Winans,  who  constructed  the  first  eight- wheeled  car 
used  on  the  Baltimore  and  Ohio  railroad,  patenting  his 
invention  in  1834.   This  litigation  about  the  movable  truck 
lasted  five  years,  and  cost,  it  is  said,  two  hundred  and  fifty 
thousand  dollars.     Bryant's  car  was  only  the  combination 
of  two  four-wheeled  trucks  for  the  transportation  of  long 
pieces  of  granite  designed  for  columns ;  the  courts,  however, 
decided  in  his  favor,  but  not  before  Winans  had  made 
immense  sums  from  his  patents.     Winans  died  worth,  it  is 
said,  over  twenty  millions  of  dollars,  while  Bryant,  who 
had  not  patented  his  devices,  had  no  legal  right  to  royalty, 
and  never,  in  fact,  received  a  cent  for  his  invention  of  the 
car. 

The  Quincy  railroad  was  designed  and  built  by  those 
interested  in  getting  material  for  the  Bunker  Hill  Monu- 
ment from  the  five  granite  quarries  of  Quincy.    The  road 
3 


34      WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 


had  a  considerable  incline  from  the  quarries  toward  the 
landing-place  on  the  Neponsefc  Eiver,  and  a  single  horse 
drew  immense  loads  over  the  rails.  From  the  wharf  the 
granite  blocks  were  towed  around  the  harbor  by  a  steam 
tow-boat  and  landed  at  Charlestown.  The  total  cost  of  the 
railroad  was  thirty-four  thousand  dollars;  the  distance  trav- 
ersed was  three  miles,  and  there  was  a  double  track 
constructed  of  stone  ties'  eight  feet  apart,  upon  which 
were  laid  longitudinal  beams  plated  on  the  top  with  iron. 
The  cars  carried  their  load  on  a  platform  under  the  axle,  or 


FIRST  AMERICAN  RAILWAY  (THE  "GRANITE  ROAD"). 


if  the  blocks  were  large,  they  were  slung  in  chains.  The 
wheels  of  the  cars  were  of  wood,  six  feet  in  diameter,  and 
shod  with  iron  one-half  of  an  inch  thick,  with  a  flange  on 
the  inner  side  of  the  rim.  When  the  snow  came  they 
invented  a  railroad  snow-plough, —  the  first  ever  made ;  it  is 
thus  spoken  of  by  a  contemporary  writer:  "Even  the  late 
snow,  which  is  deeper  than  has  before  fallen  for  several 
years,  has  presented  no  obstruction.  On  first  passing, 
while  the  snow  was  light,  two  pieces  of  plank  were  placed 
before  the  car,  meeting  in  an  angle  at  the  centre,  and 
drawn  along  the  rails,  and  by  this  means  the  snow  was 


THE  FIRST  AMERICAN  RAILROADS. 


35 


effectually  removed,  so  as  to  render  the  travelling  of  the 
wheels  as  free  as  in  summer."  In  1871  the  old  Granite 
railway  ceased  to  exist,  being  purchased  by  the  Old  Colony 
railroad,  and  the  original  track  was  replaced  by  a  new  one.* 

The  next  railroad  in  order  of  time  was  the  "Gravity" 
road,  of  Mauch  Chunk,  Pennsylvania,  finished  in  May,  1827. 
It  was  nine  miles  in  length  and  was  built  to  carry  coal  from 
the  Summit  mines  in  Carbon  county,  Pennsylvania,  to  a 
landing  on  the  Lehigh  River.  The  road  consisted  of  a 
series  of  inclines,  and  the  motive  force  was  of  a  double 
nature  —  gravity  and  mule-power.  The  mules  were 
allowed  to  ride  down  the  inclines,  a  peculiar  kind  of 
platform  being  designed  for  their  use.  It  is  said  that  they 
learned  to  enjoy  the  ride  so  much  that  nothing  could 
induce  them  to  walk  down  the  slopes. 

In  1828  a  Dry  Dock  railway  was  in  use  at  Burnt  Mill 
Point,  New  York  city.  It  was  used  to  hoist  ships  out  of  the 
water  for  repairs,  and  consisted  of  a  cradle  travelling  on 
small  iron  wheels  over  an  inclined  plane,  which  projected 
several  hundred  feet  under  water.  A  stationary  steam- 
engine  supplied  the  power;  and  horse-power  was  also  used 
at  times.f 

The  next  railroad  was  that  built  by  the  Delaware  and 
Hudson  Canal  Company  to  connect  their  mines  at  Carbon- 
dale  with  the  town  of  Honesdale  —  the  terminus  of  the 
canal.    It  is  a  gravity  railroad,  and  its  present  appearance 

*  The  fullest  descriptions  of  the  Quincy  railroad  are  given  in  Nathan  Hale's 
"  Remarks  on  the  Practicability,  etc.,  of  a  Railroad  from  Boston  to  the  Connecti- 
cut River,"  Boston,  1827,  and  in  the  chapter  on  Canals  and  Railroads  in  Volume 
IV  of  the  "  Memorial  History  of  Boston."  The  cut  above  given  originally  ap- 
peared in  C.  H.  Snow's  "  Geography  of  Boston'1  (Carter  and  Hendee,  1830). 

tSee  "Picturesque  New  York,"  A.  T.  Goodrich,  1828.  The  author  has 
never. seen  this  road  referred  to  in  any  other  work  on  railways. 


36      WOKDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 


and  machinery  will  be  described  in  Chapter  VIII,  "  Moun- 
tain Railways,"  where  the  reader  will  also  find  descriptions 
of  the  Old  Portage  railroad  over  the  Alleghanies,  and  the 
Old  Mountain  Top  Track  road  of  Virginia.  In  1829  the 
canal  company's  road  had  only  wooden  rails  and  was  oper- 
ated by  mule-and-horse-power.  It  was  upon  this  road  that 
the  first  revolution  on  American  soil  of  the  driving -ivheel  of 
a  locomotive  was  made.  The  fame  of  the  doings  of  Steph- 
enson and  others  in  England  had  reached  America  in  1825, 
and  in  1828  Mr.  John  B.  Jervis,  engineer  of  the  Delaware 
and  Hudson  canal,  sent  over  his  assistant,  Horatio  Allen,  to 
England  to  be  present  at  the  Rainhill  contest  of  competing 
locomotives,  and  commissioned  him  to  buy  three  of  the  best 
in  England.  Young  Allen  tried  to  get  Stephenson's 
services  in  the  construction  of  the  three  locomotives;  but 
Stephenson  was  too  busy  to  attend  to  them;  so  they  were 
finally  constructed  by  Foster  Raswick  and  Company,  of 
Stourbridge.  The  first  one  arrived  in  New  York  in  May, 
1829.  It  was  one  of  the  "  grasshopper "  make,  and  had  a 
fierce  lion's  head  painted  in  red  on  the  front  of  the  boiler- 
hen  ce  its  name,  or  sobriquet,  the  "Stourbridge  Lion."  It 
was  first  exhibited  at  the  West  Point  Foundry,  foot  of 
Beach  Street,  New  York  city  (the  birth-place  of  so  many 
of  the  early  American  locomotives),  and  then  taken  to 
Honesdale.  The  trial-trip  occurred  on  the  8th  of  August, 
1829.  The  whole  population  within  a  radius  of  forty  miles 
turned  out  to  see  'the  spectacle,  and  an  old  Queen  Anne 
cannon  was  brought  up  from  New  York  to  add  its  voice  to 
those  of  the  people.  Honesdale  is  named  after  Philip  Hone, 
once  mayor  of  New  York.  In  1829  it  was  a  town  of  only 
a  few  hundred  inhabitants,  but  is  now  a  city  of  considerable 
size. 


THE  FIRST  AMERICAN  RAILROADS. 


37 


(By  courtesy  of  the  '•  Railway  Age.") 
THE  "STOURBRIDGE  LION." 


The  track  of  the  railroad  consisted  of  hemlock  rails 
spiked  to  hemlock  ties.  Having  been  laid  in  summer,  the 
unseasoned  rails  had  got  a  good  deal  warped  and  twisted 
before  the  opening  day.  The  road  crossed  the  Lacka waxen 
River  over  a  frail  hemlock  trestle,  one  hundred  feet  in 
height,  and  as  the  locomotive  was  found  to  weigh  seven 
tons  instead  of  four,  as  the  contract  had  stipulated,  it  was 
feared  by  everybody  that  the  trestle  would  not  bear  its 
weight.  Mr.  Horatio  Allen,  who  had  charge  of  the  engine, 
was  implored  by  many  prominent  men  who  were  present 
not  to  attempt  to  cross  the  river.  But  the  garland  of^glory 
and  fame  was  floating  before  the  eyes  of  the  young  engi- 


38      WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 

neer,  and  after  running  slowly  backward  and  forward  a 
few  times  before  the  assembled  multitude,  he  pulled  the 
throttle-valve  open,  and,  shouting  a  loud  good-bye  to  the 
crowd,  dashed  swiftly  away  around  the  dangerous  curve, 
and  over  the  swaying  bridge.  After  running  a  few  miles 
he  returned  in  safety,  amid  the  shouts  of  the  people  and 
the  booming  of  the  cannon. 

The  locomotive  was  a  success,  but  the  company  was  not 
rich  enough  at  that  time  to  purchase  iron  rails,  and  the 
wooden  ones  proving  too  frail  for  the  engine,  it  was  housed 
in  a  shanty,  on  the  canal  dock,  where  it  lay  for  years  a 
prey  to  rust  and  decay.  The  boiler  was  afterward  used  in 
a  foundry  at  Carbondale;  the  pump  was  used  for  several 
years  by  an  employe  of  the  company,  and  finally  lost;  and 
the  rest  of  the  old' hulk  was  partly  hacked  to  pieces  by  relic 
hunters,  and  partly  sold  for  old  iron.  Horatio  Allen,  who 
figured  so  conspicuously  on  this  occasion,  is  a  graduate  of 
Columbia  College.  He  built  the  first  eight- wheeled  locomo- 
tive, and  has  been  successively  assistant  engineer  on  the 
Croton  Aqueduct,  president  of  the  New  York  and  Erie 
railroad,  president  of  the  American  Society  of  Civil  Engi- 
neers, and  consulting  engineer  of  the  great  New  York  and 
Brooklyn  bridge. 

The  curtain  next  rises  upon  an  unusually  attractive 
scene  in  which  the  figure  of  the  noble  philanthropist  and 
manufacturer,  Peter  Cooper,  is  the  centre  of  interest.  It 
curiously  marks  the  recent  origin  of  the  railroad  system  that 
the  man  (Peter  Cooper),  who  built  the  first  railroad  loco- 
motive ever  made  in  America,  was  alive  in  1882,  and  yet 
was  forty  years  old  when  he  constructed  his  locomotive. 
Mr.  Cooper  not  only  built  the  first  American  locomotive, 
but  what  was  more  important,  he  proved  that  it  could  run 


THE  FIRST  AMERICAN  RAILROADS. 


39 


at  a  high  rate  of  speed  round  curves  of  a  short  radius.  In 
consideration  of  these  services  he  has  been  called  "  The 
Father  of  the  Locomotive  System  in  America." 

In  1826  Baltimore  woke  up  to  the  fact  that  she  must  do 
something  to  regain  the  trade  that  the  Erie  canal  and  the 
roads  of  Pennsylvania  were  taking  out  of  her  hands.  It 
was  decided  to  build  a  railroad  through  the  Potomac  Val- 
ley and  over  the  Alleghanies.    The  first  section  of  the  road 
was  opened  in  1830.    It  consisted  of  a  double  track  extend- 
ing thirteen  miles  to  Ellicott's  Mills.     ';What  motive- 
power  shall  we  have?"  that  was  the  great  question.  The 
horse-car  experiment  did  not  pay,  and  various  other  devices 
were  tried.    Evan  Thomas  built  for  the  road  a  car  with 
sails,  which  ran  when  the  wind  was  favorable.  Baron 
Krudener,  Russian  envoy  to  this  country,  rode  on  this  car, 
and  managed   the  sail  himself,  declaring  that  he  was 
charmed  with  his  ride.    But  the  thing  was  of  little  value. 
Then  they  tried  a  horse-power  car,  a  machine  somewhat 
like  the  wood-cutting  apparatus  we  see  afrrailway  stations, 
only  the  horse  on  the  Baltimore  road  propelled  himself  and 
his  fellow  passengers  over  the  rails  instead  of  sawing  wood 
with  a  buzz-saw.    The  horse-power  car  worked  pretty  well, 
but  on  one  occasion,  when  drawing  a  number  of  editors 
and  other  representatives  of  the  press,  the  machine  ran 
into  a  cow,  and  ignominiously.  upset  the  inspecting  com- 
pany in  a  ditch.    And,  inasmuch  as  the  company  had  to 
endure  thereafter  innumerable  bad  jokes  and  puns  (for 
example,  "the  cowed  editors"),  they  naturally  passed  an 
unfavorable  verdict  upon  the  machine  which  had  subjected 
them  to  this  annoyance. 

How  it  next  came  to  pass  that  Peter  Cooper  built  his 
little  engine,  the  "Torn  Thumb,"  and  made  his  famous 


40      WONDERS  A!N"D  CURIOSITIES  OE  THE  RAILWAY. 


trial-trip  on  the  railroad,  he  must  be  allowed  to  tell  in  his 
own  graphic  way:* 

"  It  is  now  about  fifty-five  years  since  I  was  drawn  into 
a  speculation  in  Baltimore.  Two  men  there,  whom  I  knew 
slightly,  came  up  and  asked  me  to  join  them  in  buying  a 
tract  of  three  thousand  acres  of  land  within  the  city  limits. 
It  included  the  shore  for  three  miles,  and  the  new  Balti- 
more and  Ohio  railroad  was  going  to  run  through  it.  The 


(By  courtesy  of  the  "  Railway  Age.") 
PETER  COOPER'S  LOCOMOTIVE. 


road  was  chartered,  and  a  little  of  it  was  graded.  Its  cars 
were  to  be  drawn  by  horses ;  nobody  thought  of  the  possi- 
bility of  steam.  I  consulted  my  friend  Gideon  Lee,  who 
served  as  alderman  with  me  fifty-two  years  ago  now,  and 
he  advised  me  that  it  was  a  good  scheme.  He  said  the  land 
was  worth  five  hundred  thousand  dollars,  whether  the  road 
was  ever  finished  or  not.  So  I  went  to  Baltimore,  saw  the 
land,  and  agreed  to  take  one-third,  and  paid  my  money, 
twenty  thousand  dollars. 

*  As  reported  in  the  Boston  "  Sunday  Herald 11  for  July  9,  1882. 


THE  FIRST  AMERICAN  RAILROADS. 


41 


"  They  drew  on  me  every  little  while  for  taxes,  etc.,  and 
when,  at  the  end  of  a  year,  I  went  down  again,  I  found  out 
that  neither  of  my  partners  had  paid  a  cent  on  the  pur- 
chase, and  that  I  had  been  sending  down  money  to  pay 
their  board!  The  Baltimore  and  Ohio  railroad  had  got 
some  wooden  rails  laid,  and  thinking  it  might  amount  to 
something,  I  bought  my  swindling  partners  out,  paying  one 
of  them  ten  thousand  dollars.  I  thought  it  would  pay,  for 
the  Baltimore  and  Ohio  railroad  had  run  its  tracks  down 
to  Ellicott's  Mills,  thirteen  miles,  and  had  laid  '  quakehead ' 
rails,  as  they  called  them,  strap  rails,  you  know,  and  had 
put  on  horses.  Then  they  began  to  talk  about  the  English 
experiments  with  locomotives.  But  there  was  a  short  turn 
of  one  hundred  and  fifty  feet  radius  around  Point  of  Rocks, 
and  the  news  came  from  England  that  Stephenson  said  that 
no  locomotive  could  draw  a  train  on  any  curve  shorter 
than  a  nine  hundred  foot  radius.  The  horse-car  didn't  pay 
and  the  road  stopped.  The  directors  had  a  bad  fit  of  the 
blues.  I  had  naturally  a  knack  at  contriving,  and  I  told 
the  directors  that  I  believed  I  could  knock  together  a  loco- 
motive that  would  get  the  train  around  Point  of  Bocks.  I 
found  that  my  speculation  was  a  loss  unless  I  could  make 

the  road  a  *  go.1 

"  So  I  came  back  to  New  York  and  got  a  little  bit  of  an 
engine,  about  one  horse-power  (it  had  a  three  and  a  half 
inch  cylinder,  and  fourteen  inch  stroke),  and  carried  it  back 
to  Baltimore.  I  got  some  boiler  iron  and  made  a  boiler, 
about  as  big  as  an  ordinary  wash-boiler,  and  then  how  to 
connect  the  boiler  with  the  engine  I  didn't  know." 

"  You  had  been  a  worker  in  wood,  I  believe,"  said  the 
gentleman  to  whom  this  narrative  was  imparted  by  Mr. 
Cooper. 


42      WONDERS  AKD  CURIOSITIES  OP  THE  RAILWAY. 

"  Yes,  and  in  iron,  too.    I  had  not  only  learned  coach- 
making  and  wood  carving,  but  I  had  an  iron-foundry  and 
had  some  manual  skill  in  working  in  it.    But  I  couldn't 
find  any  iron  pipes.    The  fact  is  that  there  were  none  for 
sale  in  this  country.    So  I  took  two  muskets  and  broke  off 
the  wood  part,  and  used  the  barrels  for  tubing  to  the 
boiler,  laying  one  on  one  side  and  the  other  on  the  other. 
I  went  into  a  coach-maker's  shop  and  made  this  locomotive, 
which  I  called  the  '  Tom  Thumb,'  because  it  was  so  insig- 
nificant.   I  didn't  intend  it  for  actual  service,  but  only  to 
show  the  directors  what  could  be  done.    I  meant  to  show 
two  things:  first,  that  short  turns  could  be  made;  and, 
secondly,  that  I  could  get  rotary  motion  without  the  use 
of  a  crank.    I  effected  both  of  these  things  very  nicely. 
I  changed  the  movement  from  a  reciprocating  to  a  rotary 
motion.    I  got  steam  up  one  Saturday  night;  the  presi- 
dent of  the  road  and  two  or  three  gentlemen  were  stand- 
ing by,  and  we  got  on  the  truck  and  went  out  two  or  three 
miles.    All  were  very  much  delighted,  for  it  opened  new 
possibilities  for  the  road.    I  put  the  locomotive  up  for  the 
night  in  a  shed.    All  were  invited  to  a  ride  Monday  —  a  ride 
to  Ellicott's  Mills.    Monday  morning,  what  was  my  grief 
and  chagrin  to  find  that  some  scamp  had  been  there,  and 
chopped  off  all  the  copper  from  the  engine  and  carried  it 
away  —  doubtless  to  sell  to  some  junk  dealer.    The  copper 
pipes  that  conveyed  the  steam  to  the  piston  were  gone.  It 
took  me  a  week*  or  more  to  repair  it.    Then  (on  Monday  it 
was)  we  started  —  six  on  the  engine  and  thirty-six  on  the 
car.    It  was  a  great  occasion,  but  it  didn't  seem  so  impor- 
tant then  as  it  does  now.    We  went  up  an  average  grade 
of  eighteen  feet  to  the  mile,  and  made  the  passage  (thirteen 
miles)  to  Ellicott's  Mills  in  an  hour  and  twelve  minutes. 


THE  FIE  ST  AMERICAN  RAILROADS. 


43 


We  came  back  in  fifty-seven  minutes.  Ross  Winans,  the 
president  of  the  road,  and  the  editor  of  the  4  Baltimore 
Gazette,'  made  an  estimate  of  the  passengers  carried  and 
the  coal  and  water  used,  and  reported  that  we  did  better 
than  any  English  road  did  for  four  years  after  that.  The 
result  of  that  experiment  was  that  the  bonds  of  the  road 
were  sold  at  once,  and  the  road  was  a  success." 

From  other  sources*  we  are  enabled  to  supplement  Mr. 
Cooper's  narrative  in  a  few  points.  One  of  the  passengers 
—  Mr.  H.  H.  Latrobe  —  says  that  the  trip  to  the  Mills  was 
most  interesting.  The  curves  were  passed  without  diffi- 
culty, at  a  speed  of  fifteen  miles  an  hour;  the  grades  were 
ascended  with  comparative  ease;  the  day  was  fine,  the  com- 
pany in  the  highest  spirits,  and  some  excited  gentlemen  of 
the  party  pulled  out  memorandum-books,  and  when  at  the 
highest  speed,  which  was  eighteen  miles  an  hour,  wrote 
their  names  and  some  connected  sentences,  to  prove  that 
even  at  that  great  velocity  it  was  possible  to  do  so. 

The  "  Tom  Thumb  "  weighed  about  a  ton ;  the  wheels  were 
two  and  a  half  feet  in  diameter;  the  fuel,  anthracite  coal. 
The  smoke-stack  "looked  like  an  aggravated  putty-blower." 
The  tubes  in  the  upper  part  of  the  boiler  were  an  antici- 
pation, or  rather  an  independent  and  almost  simultaneous 
invention  of  the  multi-tubular  arrangement  of  George 
Stephenson,  which,  together  with  the  steam-blast,  gained 
him  the  victory  at  Rainhill,  a  year  after  the  "  Alderman 
Cooper"  experiment.  It  is  important  to  remember  the 
fact  of  the  prior  and  independent  invention  in  America  of 
two  of  the  fundamental  features  of  all  locomotives.  Mr. 
Cooper's  steam-blast  apparatus  consisted  of  a  sort  of  bel- 

*W.  H.  Brown's  u  History  of  the  First  Locomotives  in  America,"  and  the 
"Baltimore  Gazette.1' 


44      WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OE  THE  RAILWAY. 


lows,  which  was  operated  by  a  belt  running  over  a  drum 
and  geared  with  the  car- wheels.  But  it  was  this  very 
steam-blast  device  which  lost  the  "  Tom  Thumb  "  the  race 
with  a  horse  owned  by  the  stage  proprietors,  Stockton  and 
Stokes,  of  Baltimore.  The  little  engine  had  been  out  a 
number  of  times,  and  although  starting  off  with  much 
puffing  and  leaking  of  steam  from  its  joints,  had  answered 
all  the  expectations  of  its  ingenious  inventor.  But  on 
the  day  of  trial  just  described,  the  stage  proprietors,  hav- 
ing learned  that  the  engine  was  on  the  track,  "brought 
down  a  gallant  gray  of  great  beauty  and  power,  and 
attached  him  to  a  car  on  the  second  track,  and  met  the 
returning  engine  at  the  Relay  House  —  so  called  because 
relays  of  horses  were  generally  procured  there.  From 
this  point  they  determined  to  have  a  race  back,  and  away 
went  horse  and  engine  —  the  snort  of  the  one  keeping  time 
to  the  puff  of  the  other.  The  gray  had  the  best  of  it  at 
first,  getting  a  quarter  of  a  mile  ahead  while  the  engine 
was  getting  up  its  steam.  The  blower  whistled,  the  steam 
blew  oif  in  vapory  clouds,  the  pace  increased,  the  passengers 
shouted,  the  engine  gained  on  the  horse,  lapped  him,  the 
silk  was  applied,  the  ♦ace' was  neck-and-neck,  nose-to-nose; 
then  the  engine  passed  the  horse,  and  a  great  hurrah 
hailed  the  victory.  But  just  at  this  moment,  when  the 
gray's  master  was  about  giving  up,  the  band  which  turned 
the  pulley  that  moved  the  blower  slipped  from  the  drum, 
the  safety  valve  ceased  to  scream,  and  the  engine,  for  want 
of  breath,  began  to  wheeze  and  pant.  In  vain  Mr.  Cooper, 
who  was  his  own  engineer  and  fireman,  lacerated  his  hands 
in  attempting  to  replace  the  band  on  the  wheel;  the  horse 
gained  on  the  machine,  and  passed  it,  to  his  great  chagrin; 
and,  although  the  band  was  presently  replaced,  and  steam 


THE  FIRST  AMERICAN  RAILROADS. 


45 


again  did  its  best,  the  horse  was  too  far  ahead  to  be  over- 
taken, and  came  in  winner  of  the  race." 


THE  "BEST  FRIEND. 


The  first  regular  passenger  railroad  in  America  worked 
by  steam-locomotives  was  the  Charleston  and  Hamburg, 
of  South  Carolina,  chartered  in  the  year  1827.  The  road 
was  eventually  one  hundred  and  thirty-six  miles  long,  ex- 
tending from  Charleston  to  Hamburg  on  the  Savannah 
Kiver,  but  only  six  miles  were  completed  during  the  first 
year.  The  first  American-built  locomotive  for  actual  ser- 
vice on  a  railroad  was  the  "  Best  Friend,"  built  for  this 
South  Carolina  road  in  the  West  Point  Foundry,  and  first 


46      WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 

operated  on  the  track  in  November  or  December,  1830. 
The  horse-power  and  sailing  car*  experiments  had  been 
tried  by  the  directors  of  this  southern  road,  too,  but  had 
,  not  proved  of  practical  value.    A  premium  of  $500  had 
been  offered  by  the  directors  for  the  best  horse-power  car, 
and  it  had  been  taken  by  Mr.  C.  E.  Detmold,  for  a  machine 
in  which  the  horse  worked  on  an  endless-chain  platform. 
His  machine  was  called  "  The  Flying  Dutchman."  But 
the  new  steam-engine  captivated  everybody,  and  it  was 
resolved  to  use  no  other  motor  on  the  new  railroad.  This 
was  a  courageous  step  to  take  at  that  early  date,  and  South 
Carolina  people  can  now  boast  that  the  directors  of  the 
first  passenger  railroad  in  that  state,  and  in  the  United 
States,  were  the  earliest  railroad  officials  in  the  world  to 
disown  all  motors  except  steam.    The  "  Best  Friend  "  had  a 
vertical  boiler  devoid  of  fire-tubes  and  looking  very  much 
like  a  gigantic  beer-bottle.    The  furnace  at  the  bottom  of 
the  boiler  was  surrounded  with  water,  and  protuberances 
called  teats  ran  out  from  its  sides  and  top  in  order  to 
secure  more  heating  surface.    The  machine  ran  for  about 
a  year  and  then  exploded  its  boiler,  owing  to  the  unsuc- 
cessful attempt  of  the  negro  fireman  to  stop  the  annoying 
hissing  of  the  steam  by  sitting  on  the  safety-valve.  The 
negro  had  his  thigh  broken,  and  afterward  died  from  the 
effects  of  the  accident.    The  engineer,  Nicholas  W.  Dar- 
rell,  was  at  the  same  time  pretty  badly  scalded.    On  Jan- 
uary 15,  1831,  the  managers  of  the  road,  having  obtained 
another  engine,  the  "  West  Point,"  celebrated  the  anniver- 
sary of  the  opening  of  the  road.    The  day  was  raw  and 
chilly,  but  the  few  hundred  guests  and  stockholders  that 
assembled  are  reported  to  have  had  a  pleasant  and  even 

*For  an  account  of  the  sailing  car  experiment,  see  Chapter  VII. 


THE  FIRST  AMERICAN  RAILROADS. 


47 


"hilarious"  time.  A  negro  band  discoursed  sweet  music, 
and,  to  allay  the  fears  of  the  nervous,  a  car  loaded  with 
cotton  bales  was  placed  between  the  locomotive  and  the 
passengers. 

Suppose  now  a  year  to  have  passed,  and  let  the  scene 
be  shifted  from  the  land  of  the  palmetto  to  the  land  of  the 
pine,  or  from  Charleston  to  Albany,  New  York.    It  is  ten 
o'clock  in  the  morning  of  August  9,  1831.    At  the  head 
of  Lydius  street,  two  miles  from  the  Hudson  Eiver,  which 
creeps  silverly  away  southward  between  green  hills,  there 
stands  on  a  railroad  track  a  queer-looking  locomotive,  and 
behind  it  are  a  tender  and  two  strange  passenger  cars, 
consisting  of  the  bodies  of  stage-coaches  fastened  upon 
railroad  trucks.    A  great  crowd  is  assembled,  and  it  is 
nearly  time  to  start  the  train.    The  railroad  is  the  Mohawk 
and  Hudson;  the  company  has  been  running  its  cars  by 
horse-power,  but  has  recently  received  by  river-boat  from 
the  West  Point  Foundry  a  new  motor  in  the  shape  of  the 
locomotive  engine,  "De  Witt  Clinton,"— the   third  one 
built  in  the  United  States  for  actual  service,  and  the  first 
of  that  character  ever  run  on  a  passenger  railroad  in  the 
northern  states.    Accordingly,  everybody  is  full  of  interest 
and  curiosity,  and  at  all  available  points  along  the  sixteen 
miles  of  railroad  between  Albany  and  Schenectady,  the 
farmers  are  out  in  force,  with  their  teams  and  families,  to 
see  the  wonderful  iron  steed.    It  happens  that  a  travelling 
silhouette-artist,  named  William   H.  Brown  (afterward 
author  of  the  work  on  the  "  First  Locomotives  in  Amer- 
ica"), is  in  Albany  on  this  gala-day,  and,  finding  every- 
body going  to  see  the  locomotive,  concludes  to  go  likewise; 
for  artist  Brown  is  in  the  habit  of  snipping  out  of  black 
paper  not  only  very  good  individual  portraits,  but  also 


48      WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 

representations  of  whole  groups  of  people,  as  well  as  race- 
courses, harbors,  buildings,  etc.  Arrived  in  presence  of 
the  curious  train  of  cars,  he  sees  his  opportunity  for 
securing  a  nice  advertising  plum;  so  he  whips  out  a  letter 
from  his  pocket,  inverts  his  hat  for  a  desk,  and  hastily 
makes  a  rough  drawing  of  locomotive  and  tender,  and  the 
first  two  passenger-coaches.  In  the  evening  of  the  same 
day  he  neatly  cut  out  of  a  sheet,  or  sheets,  of  black  paper, 
six  feet  in  length,  his  now  famous  profile-picture, —  mod- 
elled upon  the  sketch, —  and,  after  exhibiting  it  in  Albany, 
presented  it  to  the  Connecticut  Historical  Society,  where 
it  is  still  cherished  as  one  of  the  society's  choicest  treas- 
ures.   It  has  often  been  reproduced  in  print.* 

But  conductor  John  T.  Clark,  having  stepped  from  plat- 
form to  platform  outside  the  coaches  to  collect  the  tickets 
(previously  sold  at  hotels  and  other  public  places  through- 
out the  city),  now  mounts  a  little  buggy-seat  at  the  top 
of  the  tender,  and  blows  a  tin  horn  as  the  signal  for 
departure:  the  engine  starts  with  a  great  jerk;  and  to  the 
accompaniment  of  much  puffing  and  wheezing  from  it, 
and  loud  shouts  from  the  crowd,  the  train  moves  off  amid 
a  cloud  of  smoke  and  a  shower  of  sparks,  and  goes  "  thun- 
dering along"  toward  Schenectady.  Among  the  passen- 
gers are  profile-artist  Brown  and  Judge  J.  L.  Gillis.  The 
latter  gentleman  has  left  as  graphic  a  picture  of  the  trip 
as  the  artist  has  of  the  cars  and  engine.  Says  Judge 
Gillis: 

*The  faces  of  those  in  the  coaches  are  actual  likenesses,  as  is  the  case  also' 
with  the  engineer.  The  names  of  the  engineer  and  passengers  are  as  follows, 
beginning  at  the  locomotive:  David  Matthew,  engineer;  first  car,  Erastus 
Corning,  Mr.  Lansing,  ex-Governor  Yates,  J.  J.  Boyd,  Thurlow  Weed,  John 
Miller,  Mr.  Van  Zant,  Billy  Winne  (penny  postman) ;  second  car,  John  Town- 
send,  Major  Meigs,  "Old  Hays'1  (high  constable  of  New  York),  Mr.  Dudley, 
Joseph  Alexander  (of  the  Commercial  Bank),  Lewis  Benedict,  and  J.  J.  De- 
graft. 


50     WOKDERS  AKD  CURIOSITIES  OE  THE  RAILWAY. 


"  The  train  was  composed  of  coach-bodies,  mostly  from 
Thorp  and  Sprague's  stage-coaches,  placed  upon  trucks. 
The  trucks  were  coupled  together  with  chains,  or  chain- 
links,  leaving  from  two  to  three  feet  slack,  and  when  the 
locomotive  started  it  took  up  the  slack  by  jerks,  with 
sufficient  force  to  jerk  the  passengers,  who  sat  on  seats 
across  the  top  of  the  coaches,  out  from  under  their  hats; 
and  in  stopping  they  came  together  with  such  force  as  to 
send  them  flying  from  their  seats. 

"They  used  dry  pitch-pine  for  fuel,  and  there  being 
no  smoke  or  spark  catcher  to  the  chimney,  or  smoke-stack, 
a  volume  of  black  smoke,  strongly  impregnated  with 
sparks,*  coals,  and  cinders,  came  pouring  back  the  whole 
length  of  the  train.  Each  of  the  outside  passengers  who 
had  an  umbrella  raised  it  as  a  protection  against  the  smoke 
and  fire.  They  were  found  to  be  but  a  momentary  pro- 
tection, for  I  think  in  the  first  mile  the  last  one  went  over- 
board, all  having  their  covers  burnt  off  from  the  frames, 
when  a  general  melee  took  place  among  the  deck-passen- 
gers, each  whipping  his  neighbor  to  put  out  the  fire. 
They  presented  a  very  motley  appearance  on  arriving  at 
the  first  station."  At  this  point  a  successful  experi- 
ment was  tried  for  the  purpose  of  remedying  the  terrible 
bumps  and  jerks  that  were  endangering  the  beaver  hats 
of  the  dignitaries,  and  creating  such  a  panic  among  the 
second-story  passengers.  The  three  links  in  each  coupling 
having  been  stretched  to  their  extreme  tension,  a  rail  from 
the  next  fence  was  extended  horizontally  between  each  pair 
of  cars,  and  fastened  to  its  place  by  means  of  the  packing- 

*The  author  is  told,  by  those  who  rode  on  the  first  American  trains,  that 
the  sparks  from  wood-burning  locomotives,  previous  to  the  invention  of  the 
spark-arrester,  were  often  as  large  as  the  thumb-nail,  and  even  larger. 


THE  FIRST  AMERICAN  RAILROADS. 


51 


yarn  used  for  the  cylinders.*  This  proved  satisfactory, 
and  after  a  run  to  Schenectady,  where  refreshments  were 
partaken  of,  the  train  returned  to  Albany. 

44  The  incidents  off  the  train,"  continues  Judge  Gillis, 
"were  quite  as  striking  as  those  on  board.  A  general 
notice  of  the  contemplated  trip  having  been  given,  it 
excited  not  only  the  curiosity  of  those  living  along  the 
line  of  the  road,  but  of  persons  at  a  distance,  causing  a 
large  collection  of  people  at  all  the  intersecting  roads 
along  the  route.  Everybody,  together  with  his  wife  and 
all  his  children,  came  in  all  kinds  of  conveyances,  and, 
being  as  ignorant  of  what  was  coming  as  were  their  horses, 
drove  up  to  the  railroad  as  near  as  they  could  get,  only 
looking  for  the  best  position  to  secure  a  view  of  the  train. 
As  it  approached,  the  horses  took  fright  and  wheeled, 
upsetting  buggies,  carriages,  and  wagons,  and  leaving  for 
parts  unknown  to  the  passengers,  if  not  to  their  owners, 
and  it  is  not  now  positively  known  if  some  of  them  have 
yet  stopped."  Such  was  the  first  locomotive-trip  in  New 
York. 

Albany  in  1831  was  the  centre  of  a  large  amount  of 
stage  travel,  and  more  capital  was  embarked  in  it  than  in 
any  other  enterprise  of  the  time.  "  Lines  of  stages  di- 
verged to  every  point  of  the  compass;  and  the  streets  of 
Albany  were  thronged  with  vehicles  arriving  and  departing, 
sometimes  in  long  processions,  at  every  hour  of  the  day  and 
night."  f  We  are  told  that  on  the  completion  of  the  rail- 
road just  described,  many  hundreds  of  worn-out  stage- 
horses  were  turned  out  to  die.    It  would  seem,  therefore, 

*Mr.  Charles  P.  Adams,  Jr.,  has  noted  the  fact  that  this  was  the  first  rude 
and  spontaneous  device  in  the  direction  of  the  modern  buffer, 
t  See  the  *•  Historical  Magazine,"  1871,  page  14. 


52      WONDEKS  AND  CUKIOSITIES  OF  THE  KAILWAY. 


that  in  America  as  in  England,  it  was  high  time  for  the 
railroad,  and  that  here  as  there  it  supplied  an  urgently  felt 
want. 

It  should  be  added  that  the  old  Mohawk  and  Hudson 
railroad  now  forms  the  eastern  terminal  portion  of  the  New 
York  Central  road.  In  1831  there  were  not —  according  to 
Thurlow  Weed  —  above  half  a  dozen  houses  in  the  pine- 
forest  which  immediately  bordered  the  railroad  between 
Albany  and  Schenectady.  There  was  an  incline  at  each  of 
these  cities,  down  which  the  locomotives  were  unable  to 
pass;  but  a  stationary  engine,  operating  a  strong  rope  and 
winding-drum,  drew  the  trains  up  and  down  the  hills. 

In  November,  1832,  the  first  passenger  train  in  the  state 
of  Pennsylvania  made  its  trial  trip,  being  drawn  by  "  Old 
Ironsides,"— a  locomotive  built  by  Mr.  M.  W,  Baldwin, 
founder  of  the  great  locomotive  works  in  Philadelphia,  that 
now  bear  his  name.  The  accompanying  illustration  shows 
the  quaint  appd&rance  of  both  cars  and  locomotive.  The 
latter  had  wooden  spokes,  and  wrought  iron  tires.  Some- 
times the  eccentrics  would  stick  fast  so  that  the  engine 
could  move  in  neither  direction.  Whenever  repairs  were 
necessary,  they  were  made  in  the  night,  as  "  Ironsides  "  was 
the  only  locomotive  on  the  road  (the  Philadelphia,  Ger- 
mantown,  and  Norristown,  opened  for  travel  in  the  spring  of 
1832).  The  locomotive  weighed  only  seven  tons,  but^was 
thought  by  the  directors  to  be  so  heavy  that  they  came 
near  rejecting  it,  in  which  case  it  is  probable  that  its  builder 
would  never  have  constructed  another.  On  the  occasion  of 
the  trial  trip  of  the  "  Ironsides  "  it  was  discovered  that  the 
wheels  were  too  light  to  keep  the  machine  on  the  track;  so 
the  builder  and  two  machinists  pushed  it  ahead  until  con- 
siderable speed  had  been  obtained,  when  all  jumped  aboard 


54      WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 


in  order  by  their  weight  to  keep  the  wheels  down.  Moreover, 
the  boiler  was  too  small  for  the  engine,  and  steam  could 
only  be  generated  fast  enough  to  keep  it  in  motion  for  a 
short  time,  so  that  for  a  large  portion  of  the  distance  from 
Philadelphia  to  Germantown  it  was  necessary  alternately  to 
push  and  ride  in  order  to  cover  the  distance.  On  the  return 
the  connecting  pipe  between  the  tank  and  the  boiler  became 
frozen  and  had  to  be  thawed  out  with  a  fire  made  of  rails! 

One  of  the  most  curious  of  the  early  cars  was  the  "Vic- 
tory "  figured  on  page  55,  a  model  of  which  is  now  preserved 
in  the  office  of  the  Eastern  Railroad  Association  in  New 
York.  It  was  the  first  Monitor  or  raised  roof  car,  and  was 
run  on  the  Philadelphia  and  Reading  railroad  in  1836. 
The  seats  inside  were  arranged  like  those  of  an  omnibus — • 
around  the  sides.  The  car  was  entered  from  the  side,  and 
at  each  end  was  a  room, —  one  of  these  used  as  a  toilet 
closet,. and  the  other  evidently  intended  for  a  bar.  It  seems 
that  our  ancestors,  in  those  days  of  universal  drinking,  were 
unable  to  do  without  their  potations  even  when  on  a  rail- 
way journey. 

In  the  early  days  of  the  railroad  in  this  country,  freight 
cars  were  called  "burthen  cars,"  and  trains  were  called 
"  brigades  "  of  cars.  The  freight  cars  were  boxes  a  little 
longer  than  their  width,  and  had  a  wheel  at  each  corner. 
Many  of  the  locomotives  had  enormous  driving- wheels, 
twelve  feet  in  diameter.  On  one  road,  and  perhaps  on 
others,  a  novel  head-light  was  formed  by  placing  a  lot  of 
pitch-pine  on  a  platform  car  thickly  covered,  as  j>o  its  floor, 
with  sand.  The  car  preceded  the  engine,  and  the  burning 
pine-knots  made  a  famous  track-illuminator.  Almost  all 
the  first  railroads  made  use  of  wooden  rails  upon  which 
strap  iron  was  spiked.    These  strap  rails  had  an  unpleasant 


56      WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 

fashion  of  curling  up,  owing  to  the  weight  of  the  cars  on 
their  central  parts,  combined  with  the  action  of  heat  and 
frost.  When,  then,  the  ends  of  the  rails  were  struck  by  a 
car- wheel  they  would  often  be  forcedup  through  the  bottom 
of  the  car,  and  the  engineer  would  sometimes  be  obliged  to 
stop  the  train  and  pound  down  the  "  snake-head,"  as  it  was 
called,  or  else  detail  an  assistant  to  hold  it  down  with  a 
lever  while  the  train  passed  on.  Old  engineers  say  that 
often  the  "  slab  "  rails  would  peel  up  around  the  driving- 
wheel  of  the  engine  and  whiz  past  their  chins  in  very 
uncomfortable  proximity.  Persons  in  the  cars  were  often 
seriously  injured  by  these  accidents. 

The  old  stage-travel  custom  of  "booking"  passengers 
was  at  first  transferred  to  the  railroad.  And  the  English 
ticket-agent  still  boohs  a  person  for  a  first,  second,  or  third- 
class  coach.  In  this  country  the  word  car  early  supplanted 
coach,  doubtless  owing  to  the  circumstance  that  we  retained 
the  English  form  of  railway  vehicle  for  so  short  a  time. 
But  the  old  custom  of  entering  the  names  of  passengers  in 
a  book  at  the  railway  station  was  in  use,  in  Pennsylvania  at 
least,  as  late  as  1840.  The  old  booking  ledger  used  at  Phoe- 
nixville,  Pennsylvania,  on  the  Reading  railroad,  is  still  pre- 
served. The  first  entry  was  made  July  17, 1838.  But  in  a 
year  or  two  there  is  a  manifest  falling-off  in  the  care  with 
which  names  are  entered.  Instead  of  the  Christian  name 
and  surname,  some  single  descriptive  word  is  used, —  as 
"Boy,"  "Lady,"  "Stranger,"  "Friend,"  "Whiskers."  In 
1841,  by  the  way,  the  total  monthly  receipts  of  this  railroad 
were  seven  hundred  and  forty-five  dollars  and  ten  cents. 

Massachusetts  was  slower  than  her  sister  states  in  the 
adoption  of  the  railroad.  The  first  of  her  citizens  publicly 
to  agitate  the  subject  was  Benjamin  Dearborn,  of  Boston, 


THE  FIRST  AMERICAN  RAILROADS. 


57 


who  in  1819  memorialized  Congress  in  regard  to  a  scheme 
of  his,  based  upon  the  plans  of  Oliver  Evans,  for  introduc- 
ing railroads  into  general  use.*     But  the  Father  of  the 
Railroad  System  of  Massachusetts  is  Doctor  Abner  Phelps, 
who,  at  a  time  when  the  only  means  of  transportation  in 
the  state  (other  than  that  of  wagons  and  ships)  were  the 
boats  of  the  Middlesex  canal,  connecting  Boston  with  the 
Merrimack  River,  and  when  surveys  had  been  made  for  a 
canal  to  connect  the  city  with  the  Hudson  River,  publicly 
and  privately  urged  the  adoption  of  the  new  railroad  sys- 
tem which  was  just  springing  into  existence  in  England. 
Doctor  Phelps's  railroad  was,  however,  to  be  worked  by 
horse  power,  with  paths  at  the  sides  for  the  horses  to  travel, 
as  in  the  case  of  canals.    In  short,  his  road  was  to  be  mod- 
elled on  the  already  successfully  constructed  Granite  rail- 
road of  Quincy.    In  calling  Doctor  Phelps  the  Father  of 
the  Railroad  System  of  Massachusetts,  we  would  not  do  in- 
justice to  the  indefatigable  labors  of  Nathan  Hale,  then 
editor  of  the  Boston  "  Advertiser.'1  f    His  series  of  careful 
statistical  articles  on  the  "  Practicability  and  Expediency 
of  Establishing  a  Railway  on  One  or  More  Routes  from 

*  A  curious  idea  of  Dearborn  is  set  forth  in  the  following  paragraph  of  his 
respecting  his  proposed  railroad  system:  "Protection  from  the  attacks  of  as- 
sailants will  be  insured  not  only  by  the  celerity  of  the  movement,  but  by 
weapons  of  defence  belonging  to  the  carriage  and  always  kept  ready  in  it,  to  be 
wielded  by  the  number  of  passengers  constantly  travelling  in  this  spacious 
vehicle,  where  they  would  have  liberty  to  stand  erect  and  exercise  their  arms 
in  their  own  defence." 

t  On  tfie  occasion  of  the  celebration  of  the  "  Silver  Birthday  "  of  Warren 
Street  Chapel  in  Boston,  the  Reverend  Edward  Everett  Hale  said  that  he  had 
often  heard  his  father,  Nathan  Hale,  foretell  the  future  greatness  of  the  rail- 
road. Mr.  Hale  further  said :  "  As  he  illustrated  the  new  invention  of  Stephen- 
son by  the  toy  railroad  which  he  had  built  for  his  own  drawing-room,  I  was  old 
enough  to  chafe  as  I  saw  the  incredulous  smile  of  his  visitors,  and  the  half -con- 
tempt with  which  they  tried  to  turn  him  from  the  subject  of  his  delusion.1'  But 
not  long  afterward  this  very  lad  (now  the  famous  preacher  and  author)  rode  in 
triumph  on  the  first  locomotive  that  ran  over  what  is  now  the  first  five  miles  of 
the  Boston  and  Albany  railroad. 


58      WONDERS  AHD  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 


Boston  to  the  Connecticut  River,"  published  in  1827,  had 
a  very  marked  influence  upon  thinking  men,  as  is  pretty 
conclusively  shown  by  the  fact  that  a  Legislative  Com- 
mittee was  appointed  in  that  year  to  examine  the  sub- 
ject of  railroads,  and  they  made  a  favorable  report  (alluded 
to  in  Chapter  IX  of  this  volume).*  The  railroad  scheme 
was,  however,  bitterly  opposed  by  the  promoters  and  favor- 
ers of  the  canal. 

But  in  spite  of  opposition  the  railroad  was  adopted. 
Charters  were  granted  first  to  the  Boston  and  Lowell,  and 
afterward  to  the  Boston  and  Worcester  and  the  Boston  and 
Providence  railroads,  and  the  canal  scheme  was  killed.  It 
is  natural  to  find  the  same  stubborn,  prehensile  conserva- 
tism cropping  out  in  Boston  that  we  have  noted  in  the  case 
of  England.  Of  Doctor  Phelps's  railroad  scheme,  Joseph  T. 
Buckingham,  then  editor  of  the  Boston  "  Courier,"  wrote  to 
the  following  effect:  < 

"  Alcibiades,  or  some  other  great  man  of  antiquity,  it  is 
said,  cut  off  his  dog's  tail  that  quidnuncs  might  not  become 
extinct  from  want  of  excitement.  Some  such  notion,  we 
doubt  not,  moved  one  or  two  of  our  natural  and  experimen- 
tal philosophers  to  get  up  the  project  of  a  railroad  from 
Boston  to  Albany,  a  project  which  every  one  knows,  who 
knows  the  simplest  rule  in  arithmetic,  to  be  impracticable, 
but  at  an  expense  little  less  than  the  market  value  of  the 
whole  territory  of  Massachusetts;  and  which,  if  practicable, 

*  Among  the  curious  things  in  this  funny  report  is  one  of  the  reasons  given 
why  a  railroad  was  needed:  "For  many  years  previous  to  the  present  season, 
the  snow  of  our  winters  in  Massachusetts  has  been  gradually  diminished.  In- 
stead of  sleighing  for  four  months  in  a  winter,  it  is  now  rare  for  so  many  weeks, 
and  in  the  neighborhood  of  Boston,  during  the  twelve  years  previous  to  the 
present,  it  has  not  upon  an  average  been  more  than  sufficient  for  two  weeks." 
Hence  wet  and  muddy  roads,  and  the  inability  of  the  farmers  to  draw  their 
produce  to  the  market. 


THE  FIRST  AMERICAH  RAILROADS. 


59 


every  person  of  common  sense  knows  would  be  as  useless  as 
a  railroad  from  Boston  to  the  moon." 

Similar  incredulity  was  encountered  by  Gridley  Bryant, 
when  he  was  seeking  aid  to  establish  his  Granite  railroad : 
"What  do  we  know  about  railroads?"  said  the  thick- 
headed legislators.  "Who  ever  heard  of  such  a  thing?" 
"  Is  it  right  to  take  people's  land  for  a  project  that  no  one 
knows  anything  about?" 

In  like  .manner,  the  inhabitants  of  Dorchester,  as  late 
as  the  year  1842,  resolved  in  a  town  .meeting,  "That  our 
representatives  be  instructed  to  use  their  utmost  endeavors 
to  prevent,  if  possible,  so  great  a  calamity  to  our  town  as 
must  be  the  location  of  any  railroad  through  it,  and  if  that 
cannot  be  prevented,  to  diminish  this  calamity  as  far  as  pos- 
sible "  by  locating  the  road  through  the  marshes  and  over 
creeks.  At  the  present  time  some  fifty  trains  a  day  pass 
through  the  nine  or  more  railroad  stations  of  Dorchester, 
which  owes  nearly  all  its  prosperity  to  the  institution 
opposed  in  1842  with  such  amazing  fatuity  and  narrow- 
ness of  mind. 

The  railroads  to  Lowell,  to  Providence,  and  to  Worces- 
ter were  publicly  opened  in  the  same  year,  1835,  but  the 
first  locomotive  trip  was  made  on  the  Boston  and  Worcester 
in  March,  1834,  and  sections  of  the  road  were  in  use  for  a 
year  before  the  formal  celebration  of  the  opening  of  the 
road  to  Worcester.  At  the  time  the  road  was  completed  to 
Newton  there  appeared  in  the  Boston  "Advertiser"  the 
time  table  and  cut  shown  on  page  60. 

At  Worcester  a  bell  suspended  from  a  tree  gave  the  sig- 
nal for  the  departure  of  trains.  Previous  to  the  railroad, 
baggage  wagons  accomplished  the  journey  of  forty-four 
miles  between  Worcester  and  Boston  in  a  week,  if  the 


60     WONDERS  AjSTD  curiosities  of  the  railway. 


weather  was  good;  the  locomotive  performed  the  task  in 
three  hours.  We  are  informed  that  at  first  the  daily  aver- 
age transportation  of  freight  was  twelve  tons  one  way,  and 
twenty- four  the  other,  and  the  only  freight  house  of  the 


BOSTON  AND  WORCESTER  RAIL  ROAD. 


THE  PafTenger  Cars  will  continue  to  run  daily  from  the  Depot 
nearWashingtonStreet,  to  "Newton. at  6andlO  O'clock, 
A.M.  and.  at  3  £  O  el  o ck,  B  M..  and 

Re  turning  Me  ave  "Newt  on  at/and  aquarterpa-stIf.A.M.and 
a  quarter  before  £  P.M. 

Tickets  for  the  Paffag'e  either  "Way may  be  had  at  the 
Ticket  Office/No.  6\7  Wdshington-5treet,Prjce37|cents 
each ,  and  for  the  return  Paffa  g  e,of  theMaiTer  of  the  Cars 
Newton 

By  Order  of  the  President  &  Directors 

a29         'Epifts         F.A. WILLIAMS,  Cleric, 

OLD  RAILWAY  TIME-TABLE. 

line  (in  Boston)  could  hold  but  two  "  burthen  cars."  Trains* 
ran  from  Boston  to  Worcester  "three  times  each  clay  dur- 
ing the  warm  season,  and  twice  a  day  during  the  cold 
season,  excepting  Sundays." 

The  earliest  locomotive  of  the  Lowell  road  was  an 
imported  Stephenson  machine,  which  was  driven  for  a 
time  by  an  imported  engineer.  The  Lowell  road  made 
the  mistake  of  laying  its  fish-belly  rails  on  stone  ties, 
which  were  in  turn  placed  upon  longitudinal  walls  of 
masonry  sunken  in  the  road-bed,  for  it  was  thought  that 
with  any  less  substantial  support  the  locomotive  would 
always  be  overcoming  an  ascent  caused  by  the  sinking  of 
the  road-bed  under  its  weight.    The  Boston  and  Provi- 


THE  FIRST  AMERICAN  RAILROADS. 


61 


dence  road  avoided  this  error,  and  adopted  the  elastic 
wooden  bed ;  the  original  iron  rails  of  the  Providence  road 
were  so  good  that  the  last  of  them  were  not  taken  up  until 
1860. 

In  December,  1841,  was  celebrated  the  completion  of 
the  Western  railroad  connecting  Boston  with  Albany  by 
way  of  the  Berkshire  hills.    The  Boston  city  officials  made 
a  triumphal  journey  to  Albany,  and  were  entertained  in 
the  usual  style;  while  the  Albany  officials  returned  with 
their  guests  to  Boston,  and  were  in  turn  dined  and  speechi- 
fied to  their  hearts'  content.    Among  the  guests  who  went 
to  Albany  with  the  Boston  officials  were  some  New  Bed- 
ford gentlemen,  who,  "  in  order  to  lend  point  to  the  aston- 
ishing fact  that,  after  leaving  their  homes' in  the  morning, 
they  would  in  fifteen  hours  be  in  Albany,  caused  some 
spermaceti  candles  to  be  moulded,  which  they  took  with 
them  on  their  trip;  and  that  evening  the  rays  from  those 
candles  illumined  the  table  around  which  took  place  the 
civic  banquet  at  Albany.    But  the  Albanians  were  not  to 
be  outdone.    They  were  to  return  to  Boston  with  their 
guests  the  next  day,  and  in  doing  so  they  took  with  them 
a  barrel  of  flour,  the  wheat  for  which  had  been  threshed 
at  Rochester  on  the  previous  Monday  (they  went  to  Boston 
on  Wednesday),  while  the  barrel  itself  was  made  from 
wood  which,  on  the  threshing  day,  had  been  growing  in 
the   tree.    This   flour,  duly   converted   into   bread,  the 
authorities  of  the  two  cities,  and  their  invited  guests,  sol- 
emnly ate  at  a  great  dinner  given  at  the  United  States 
Hotel  in  Boston."  • 

We  must  now  turn  our  gaze  to  the  great  interior,  and 
note  the  quaint  and  curious  features  of  a  few  of  the  early 
railroads  of  that  region. 


62      WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OE  THE  RAILWAY. 


The  first  railroad  in  Ohio  was  the  old  Mad  River  and 
Lake  Erie,  extending  from  Springfield  to  Sandusky  (after- 
ward the  Cincinnati,  Sandusky  and  Cleveland,  and  now  the 
Indiana,  Bloomington  and  Western).  The  first  sod  was 
cut  at  the  end  of  Water  street,  Sandusky,  September  7, 
1835,  amid  general  rejoicing  and  festivity.  The  first 
engine  run  on  the  road  was  the  "Sandusky";  it  was  the 
first  in  America  to  which  a  regular  steam-whistle  was 
affixed,  and  was  built  at  Paterson,  New  Jersey,  by 
William  Swinburne,  a  workman  in  the  firm  of  Rog- 
ers,  Grosvenor  and  Ketchum.  An  English  mechanical 
draughtsman,  named  Hodge,  had  failed  in  his  plans  for 
the  machine,  when  the  American,  Swinburne,  stepped  for- 
ward and  offered  his  services,  which  the  firm  reluctantly 
accepted,  being  sceptical  of  the  value  of  purely  American 
skill  in  so  new  and  delicate  a  piece  of  work. 

In  1831  there  was  no  railroad  west  of  the  Alleghanies 
and  south  of  the  Ohio  River.  In  that  year  the  wealthy 
inhabitants  of  Lexington,  Kentucky,  wishing  to  be  thought 
no  whit  less  enterprising  than  Cincinnati  and  Louisville, 
and  even  aspiring  to  surpass  those  cities  in  glory  — 
having  doubtless  heard  with  wonder  of  the  doings  of  the 
locomotive  in  South  Carolina  and  New  York  — began  to 
take  measures  to  build  a  railroad  of  their  own.  Frank- 
fort was  the  nearest  available  town  on  the  Kentucky 
River.  Accordingly  it  was  resolved  to  build  the  railroad 
to  that  town.  Henry  Clay  was  an  influential  stockholder 
in  the  road.  It  was  finished  in  1838  or  1839.  The  road- 
bed consisted  at  first  of  longitudinal  limestone  sills,  ten, 
fifteen,  and  eighteen  feet  long,  with  cross-ties  laid  beneath 
them  every  four  or  five  feet.  The  rails  were  strips  of 
iron  two  and  a  half  inches  wide,  fastened  to  the  stone  sills 


THE  PIEST  AMEKICAiST  KAILKOADS. 


63 


by  means  of  lead  or  sulphur.  The  frosts  of  the  first  win- 
ter broke  up  the  stone  sills  badly,  and  they  were  replaced 
by  wood.  Some  of  the  rejected  sills  are  still  to  be  seen 
along  the  track.  The  road  was  laid  out  in  a  very  crooked 
manner,  the  engineers  affirming  that  it  was  an  advantage 
to  have  it  so,  since  the  conductor  could  look  back  along 
the  curves  and  see  his  train  more  conveniently!  The  cars 
were  at  first  for  passengers  only.  They  were  drawn  by 
two  horses  or  mules,  and  were  made  to  hold  four  persons, 
like  the  old  stage-coaches, —  which  latter,  by  the  way,  are 
still  to  be  found  in  many  parts  of  Kentucky,  the  drivers 
making  the  echoes  of  their  horns  ring  again  among  the 
beautiful  green  hills,  as  they  dash  along  over  the  finest 
roads  in  the  world. 

The  cars  of  the  Lexington  railroad  were  two-story 
structures,  the  lower  story  being  for  ladies  and  children, 
and  the  upper  one  for  men, —  though  in  warm  weather 
many  ladies  preferred  the  top,  at  least  before  the  locomo- 
tive was  put  on  the  road.  This  first  locomotive  was  a 
ridiculous  little  affair  made  by  a  Lexington  mechanic.  It 
had  no  cab,  and  the  tender  was  an  open  box-car  with  room 
for  a  small  supply  of  wood,  and  for  a  hogshead  of  water 
which  was  filled  by  pumping  from  a  well  at  the  side  of 
the  road.  In  place  of  a  "  cow-catcher,"  or  pilot,  two  large 
beams  projected  in  front  and  had  hickory  brooms  attached 
to  them  for  sweeping  the  track.  The  blacks  regarded  the 
engine  with  awe  and  fear,  considering  it  to  be  the  work 
of  the  "debbil,"  and  its  disuse  was  hailed  by  them  with 
joy.  They  thought  horses  good  enough  for  them.  When 
the  locomotive  was  first  put  on  the  road,  the  directors  cel- 
ebrated the  event  by  inviting  guests  to  make  an  excursion 
to   Frankfort  in  a  "brigade"  of  little   platform  cars. 


64     WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 


When  the  excursionists  were  drawing  near  to  that  town 
it  began  to  snow,  and  lo,  and  behold,  the  engineer  took 
shelter  with  his  locomotive  under  a  shed,  and  refused  to 
budge  an  inch  further,  declaring  that  the*"  slick "  track 
would  be  so  dangerous  that  the  train  might  be  derailed! 
Accordingly,  many  of  the  passengers  had  to  foot  it  home. 
Frankfort,  lying  in  the  river-valley,  is  at  a  much  lower 
level  than  the  line  of  the  railroad  of  those  days.  So  here, 
as  at  Albany  and  Schenectady,  the  trains  were  let  down 
the  incline  by  a  stationary  engine.  On  one  occasion  the 
cable  broke,  and  a  train  of  cars  shot  down  at  a  fearful  rate 
of  speed,  knocking  out  the  end  of  the  depot,  and  smashing 
things  generally.  This  old  inclined  plane  was  afterward 
supplanted  by  a  series  of  direct  and  reverse  curves  and  a 
tunnel. 

The  pioneer  railroad  of  the  great  western  prairies  was 
the  Northern  Cross  road  (now  the  Great  Wabash).  It 
originally  extended  from  Meredosia,  on  the  Illinois  River, 
to  Springfield,  in  the  state  of  Illinois.  Its  origin  was  in 
this  wise.*  In  1337,  the  Legislature  of  Illinois  appro- 
priated ten  million  dollars  (!)  for  a  magnificent  system 
of  internal  improvements,  and  a  large  share  of  this  was  to 
go  to  railroads.  Work  on  many  of  these  was  begun,  but  a 
great  financial  crash  came,  and  the  construction  of  all  of 
them  was  suspended  except  that  of  the  Northern  Cross, 
which  was  nearly  completed,  and  was  speedily  finished 
through  to  Springfield.  The  rails  of  the  road  were 
"  strap  "  rails,  five-eighths  of  an  inch  thick,  and  were  fast- 
ened to  the  wood  by  ten-penny  nails  sunk  into  the  rail 

*  For  the  material  of  this  sketch  of  the  first  railroad  of  the  Great  West,  the 
author  is  indebted  to  Mr.  A.  A.  Graham,  who  published  his  account  of  the  road 
in  "Potter's  American  Monthly"  for  July,  1879. 


THE  FIRST  AMERICAN  RAILROADS, 


65 


until  the  heads  were  flush  with  the  upper  surface.  The 
first  locomotive,  built  by  Rogers,  Grosvenor  and  Ketchum, 
of  New  Jersey,  was  landed  at  Meredosia  in  the  fall  of 
1838,  and  on  the  8th  of  November  of  that  year  the  first 
puff  of  a  locomotive  was  heard  in  the  prairies  of  the  West, 
where  to-day  the  smoke  of  these  ships  of  the  plain  rises 
far  off  on  a  thousand  horizons,  like  the  smoke  of  ocean 
steamships  sunk  beneath  the  watery  rim  of  the  world.  The 
little  locomotive  had  no  whistle,  no  spark-arrester,  and  no 
"cow-catcher,"  and  the  cab  was  open  to  the  sky.  Its  speed 
was  about  six  miles  an  hour,  and  where  the  railroad  and 
the  highway  lay  parallel  to  each  other  there  was  frequently 
a  trial  of  speed  between  the  locomotive  with  its  "  pleasure 
cars  "  (as  they  were  called)  and  the  stage  coaches.  Some- 
times the  stages  came  in  ahead.  Six  inches  of  snow  were 
sufficient  to  blockade  the  trains  drawn  by  this  American 
engine.  A  fight  between  a  bull  and  the  engine  is  narrated 
by  Mr.  Graham.  One  day  as  Daniels,  the  engineer,  was 
trundling  along  with  his  locomotive  he  espied  "a  belliger- 
ent Taurus,  who  sternly  faced  the  train,  and  with  tail  in 
the  air,  head  lowered  in  a  defiant  attitude,  seemed  like  the 
valiant  Fitz- James  to  say: 

"  'This  rock  shall  fly 
From  its  firm  base  as  soon  as  I.' 

"  Daniels  came  up  to  him,  but  unflinchingly  and  defiantly 

he  held  his  place.    Daniels  shouted,  threw  sticks  of  wood 

at  him  and  swore,  but  all  to  no  purpose ;  the  bull  had  the 

track  and  meant  to  keep  it.    Daniels  backed  his  train  and 

came  up  again,  making  all  the  noise  he  could,  but  this  only 

incensed  the  bull,  and  immovably  he  kept  his  place.  The 

third  time  the  engineer  tried  to  scare  him  off  by  touching 

him  with  the  engine,  but  there  he  stood,  master  of  the  sit- 
5 


66      WONDEKS  AND  OUEIOSITIES  OF  THE  EAILWAY. 

uation.  By  this  time  Daniels  got  mad  and  said:  4  By  Dads, 
I'll  try  which  has  the  hardest  head! ' 

"The  meeting  came  near  being  disastrous  to  both,  but 
Taurus  went  tumbling  down  the  bank,  never  to  repeat  his 
experiment.1' 

It  was  the  fate  of  this  pioneer  prairie  railroad  to  succumb 
for  a  time.  For  some  reason  it  could  not  be  made  to  pay. 
The  engineer  ran  the  locomotive  off  the  track,  burnt  out  the 
flues,  and  finally  the  unlucky  thing  was  abandoned  on  the 
prairie  east  of  Jacksonville,  where  it  lay  for  nearly  a  year. 
It  was  then  purchased  by  General  Semples,  of  Alton,  who 
had  an  idea  that  he  could  introduce  road  locomotives  on 
the  plains.  He  put  on  a  new  set  of  wheels,  with  tires  two 
f^et  tvide,  changed  the  engine  power,  and  made  one  trial 
trip,  from  Alton  to  Springfield.  But  he  had  to  take  along  a 
yoke  of  oxen  to  pull  his  machine  out  of  the  mud-holes  in 
which,  from  time  to  time,  it  stuck  fast,  and  so  he  concluded 
that  that  sort  of  motor  would  not  pay.  The  wheels  made 
two  broad  parallel  tracks  over  the  prairie,  and  became  a 
source  of  great  wonder  to  travellers  who  crossed  them. 
Some  thought  that  the  trail  was  that  of  an  enormous  ser- 
pent, and  two  men  actually  followed  it  to  Springfield,  "to 
see  what  kind  of  a  critter  it  mout  be."  They  found  the 
monster  on  the  prairie  below  the  city,  and  there  it  lay 
until  broken  up  for  old  iron.  But  if  the  Northern  Cross 
railroad  thus  ignominiously  failed,  not  so  did  other  and 
subsequent  roads.  They  multiplied  apace.  In  1846,  the 
Michigan  Central  road  was  in  operation,  and  so  were  many 
others. 

A  good  idea  of  the  Western  railway  car  of  this  period 
may  be  obtained  from  the  accompanying  view  of  a  car  of 
the  Michigan  Central.    It  was  copied  from  an  original 


THE  FIRST  AMERICAN  RAILROADS. 


67 


schedule  of  rates  of  freight  and  fare,  and  reminds  one  very 
strongly  of  the  little  Sunday-school  book  illustrations  of 
one's  boyhood  days.    The  roof  is  low  and  flat,  and  we 


MICHIGAN  CENTRAL  RAILROAD  CAR,  1818. 


shudder  to  think  of  the  discomfort  of  the  heat  in  summer 
and  cold  in  winter  (there  being  no  stove)  to  which  the 
passengers  must  have  been  subjected. 


CHAPTER  IV. 


THE  BANDING  OF  THE  CONTINENT. 


The  road-making  sons  of  Vulcan  making  an  uninhabited  country  habitable. 


OR  if  there  were  to  be  no  railroads,  it  was,  on  the 


whole,  rather  an  impertinence  in  Columbus  to  dis- 
cover America.*  What  is  the  use  of  a  country  sprawling 
out  from  Maine  to  California,  from  Mackinaw  Bay  to  the 
Florida  reefs,  if  you  are  to  spend  all  your  life  in  walking 
over  it?  "  So  think  the  American  people,  and  their  reply 
to  this  query  is  the  great  web  of  trunk  lines  that,  together 
with  the  telegraph,  forms  the  sympathetic  nervous  system 
of  the  nation  and  does  perhaps  more  than  anything  else  to 
compact  the  several  states  into  one  homogeneous  common- 
wealth. 

It  is  hardly  necessary  to  caution  the  reader  against  the 
mistake  of  the  old  lady  who  thought  a  railroad  was  called 
a  "  trunk  line"  because  it  carried  trunks.  A  long  rail- 
road, with  its  numerous  branches,  resembles  a  tree-trunk 
in  more  than  one  respect.  As  the  latter  carries  up  nour- 
ishment to  the  leaves  from  the  roots,  but  produces  nothing 
itself,  so  does  a  railroad  carry  sustenance  from  the  farms 
of  any  region  to  the  cities;  it  is  simply  a  mediator  between 
the  two. 

*This  allusion  to  Columbus,  by  Gail  Hamilton,  reminds  one  of  Thomas ^H. 
■Benton's  noble  conception  of  a  colossal  statue  of.  the  great  discoverer,  to  be 
hewn  out  of  the  solid  granite  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  at  some  point  on  the 
Union  Pacific  railroad,  and  to  point  with  outstretched  arm  to  the  western  hori- 
zon, saying  to  the  flying  passenger,  "  There  is  the  East;  there  is  India !" 


— iEscHYLUs,  Eumenides. 


68 


THE  BANDIISTG  OF  THE  CONTINENT. 


69 


Many  of  the  trunk  lines  of  the  eastern  states  have  been 
formed  by  the  consolidation  of  smaller  early  lines.  The 
New  York  Central,  for  example,  is  the  consolidation  of  ten 
small  roads  which  lay  mostly  in  a  direct  line,  connect- 
ing one  with  another.  So  the  Pennsylvania  Central  —  the 
largest  railroad  system  in  the  world* — leases  or  controls 
fifteen  other  lines,  extending  through  the  most  productive 
portion  of  the  country  as  far  as  to  the  Mississippi  River. 
What  splendid  and  powerful  corporations  are  those  which 
operate  such  railroads  as  the  Midland  of  England,  and  the 
Pennsylvania  Central  in  this  country,  with  their  long  series 
of  huge  bridges  and  viaducts,  their  magnificent  stations, 
terminal  dockyards,  construction  and  repair  shops,  their 
thousands  of  cars  and  locomotives  and  employes,  and  their 
income  of  millions  of  dollars!  These  "strong  light  works 
of  modern  engineers1'  are  matched  only  by  such  structures 
as  the  Chinese  wall  and  the  highways  of  Peru  and  Borne. 
To  future  ages  the  vast  embankments  and  tunnels  of  our 
railroad  lines  will  be  such  objects  of  admiration  as  are  to 
us  the  famous  works  just  mentioned. 

The  railroads  that  sprang  into  existence  immediately 
after  the  demonstration  of  the  success  of  the  institution - 
were  numerous.  At  the  close  of  1832  there  were  nineteen 
railroads,  either  completed  or  in  process  of  construction,  in 
the  United  States.  These  roads,  however,  were  all  near  the 
Atlantic  seaboard.  As  late  as  1850  Ohio  had  but  one  trunk 
line,  i.e.,  that  connecting  Sandusky  with  Cincinnati,  and  in 
that  year  there  was  not  a  mile  of  railroad  west  of  the  Mis-. 

*  The  Pennsylvania  Central  has  in  its  system  six  thousand  four  hundred  and 
thirty-eight  miles  of  track.  The  largest  single  corporate  railroad  organiza- 
tion in  the  world  which  is  under  one  title,  with  but  one  set  of  officers  for  the 
whole,  is  the  Chicago,  Milwaukee  and  St.  Paul  (four  thousand  five  hundred 
miles).  The  longest  single  line  under  one  management  is  the  Southern  Pacific, 
extending  from  San  Francisco  to  New  Orleans. 


70      WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 


sissippi.  The  first  railroad  out  of  Chicago  was  that  connect- 
ing Galena  and  Chicago,  chartered  in  1836.  The  first 
land-grant  of  the  Government  was  made  to  the  Mobile  and 
Ohio  road  in  1848.    It  consisted  of  one  million  acres. 

Among  the  first  trunk-roads  to  secure  a  princely  land- 
grant  were  the  Central  Pacific  and  the  Union  Pacific,  form- 
ing one  continuous  line.  There  was  splendid  audacity 
displayed  in  the  construction  of  this  trans- continental  road. 
Everything  verged  on  the  impossible;  everything  was  on  a 
gigantic  scale,  as  befitted  the  girdling  of  the  globe.  The 
history,  or  romance,  is  a  double  one.  On  one  side  of  the 
rocky  backbone  of  the  Continent  you  see  an  army  of  twelve 
thousand  dark  specks  slowly  creeping  westward,  and  spin- 
ning behind  them  as  they  move  a  single  iron  thread.  For  six 
hundred  miles  of  the  route  there  is  not  timber  enough  to 
make  a  cross-tie ;  the  dwelling-houses  of  the  labor-armv  are 
built  on  car-trucks;  every  supply  must  come  from  the  rear; 
the  lack  of  confidence  in  the  enterprise  is  so  great,  that  the 
laborers,  like  the  soldiers  of  Cortez  and  Pizarro,  mutiny  and 
demand  their  pay  in  advance.  But  for  five  years  their 
steady  tramp  is  heard, —  across  the  boundless  plains,  up 
the  great  mountain  range  with  its  whelming  snow-drifts 
(they  split  the  rocks  with  something  better  than  vinegar), 
across  the  hot  sands  of  the  waterless  desert  —  until  the 
second  army  advancing  from  the  west  is  met,  and  the  last 
stitch  is  taken  in  the  earth's  long  belt.  There,  near  the 
head  of  the  Great  Salt  Lake,  they  lay  down  a  tie  of  polished 
laurel  bound  with  silver  bands;  Nevada  sends  her  silver 
spike,  California  two  of  gold,  and  Arizona  three  (of  silver, 
iron,  and  gold,  respectively);  the  last  spike  and  the  hammer 
that  drives  it  are  in  electric  communication  with  nearly  all 
the  fire-alarm  telegraphs  in  the  country;  the  silver  sledge 


THE  BANDING  OF  THE  CONTINENT. 


71 


gleams  in  the  air,  and  the  blow  that  follows  is  heard  farther 
than  any  other  blow  ever  struck  by  mortal  man;  and  all 
over  the  continent  the  ringing  of  bells,  and  the  booming  of 
cannon,  simultaneously  announce  the  tidings  of  the  feat, 
while  locomotives  from  either  side  roll  over  the  place  of 
junction,  touch  pilots,  and  mingle  their  ear-splitting 
whistles  with  the  general  conclamation. 

But  one  half  of  the  story  is  yet  to  be  told.    We  have 
yet  to  learn  how  the  Central  Pacific  was  built  on  the  other 
side  of  the  Continent;  how  the  five  Sacramento  merchants 
talked  over  the  project  in  the  hardware  store  of  Huntington 
and  Hopkins,  at  No.  5,  K  street;  and  how  they  turned  a 
deaf  ear  to  the  ridicule  poured  upon  them  (the  project  was 
considered  so  visionary  that  bankers  dared  not  subscribe  to 
the  stock  of  the  road,  for  fear  of  injuring  their  credit);  how 
.they  found  a  route  through  the  snowy  Sierras,  brought  their 
material  around  Cape  Horn,  imported  ten  thousand  Chinese 
laborers,  hurled  thousands  of  tons  of  solid  rock  down 
among  the  pines  by  a  single  charge  of  nitro-glycerine, 
bolted  their  snow-sheds  to  the  mountains,  and  filled  up,  or 
bridged,  hundreds  of  chasms  and  valleys.     "  Two  thousand 
feet  of  solid  granite  barred  the  way  upon  the  mountain  top 
where  eagles  were  at  home.    The  Chinese  wall  was  a  toy 
beside  it.    It  could  neither  be  surmounted  nor  doubled,  and 
•so  they  tunnelled  what  looks  like  a  bank  swallow's  hole  from 
a  thousand  feet  below.     Powder  enough  was  expended  in 
persuading  the  iron  crags  and  cliffs  to  be  a  thoroughfare,  to 
fight  half  the  battles  of  the  Revolution."  * 

And  so,  through  eight  hundred  miles  of  uninhabited 
country,  through  mountains  of  perpetual  snow  and  across 

*  "  Between  the  Gates,11  by  Benjamin  F.  Taylor. 


72      WONDERS  AKD  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 


an  alkali  desert,  the  road  was  built.   The  Union  Pacific  cost 
about  $39,000,000,  and  the  Central  about  $140,000,000; 
but  in  the  two  years  1872  and  1873  the  roads  saved  to  the 
government,  in   the  transportation  of  postal   and  war 
materials  alone,  the  sum  of  $3,789,788.    And  yet  this 
was  the  road  that  as  late  as  1856  had  been  declared  as 
impracticable  as  a  road  to  the  North  Pole.    "Suppose  a 
train  to  be  snowed  up  eight  hundred  miles  from  Iowa  in 
November,  how  are  you  going  to  get  to  it  before  May?" 
it  was  asked.    And  the  point  was  apparently  well  taken,  for 
during  the  first  years  of  the  operation  of  the  road,  trains 
were  snowed  up  for  weeks  at  a  time.    But  snowrsheds  and 
snow-ploughs  and  relief-trains  of  provisions  solved  the 
difficulty.    "Your  road-bed  and  your  trains  will  be  over- 
whelmed by  land-slides,"  said  the  alarmists.    How  this 
objection  was  practically  answered  will  be  best  illustrated 
by  an  example.    In  1880  a  vast  avalanche  of  earth  and 
rock  buried  the  track  near  Alta  on  the  California  slope  of 
the  Nevadas;  to  clear  it  away  was  a  month's  job,  if  done 
by  shovel  and  pick.    But  here  was  a  passenger-train  wait- 
ing to  move  on.    In  one  hour  a  flume  of  boards  had  been 
made  to  tap  a  mountain  stream  near  by;  an  hydraulic  hose 
was  borrowed  of  some  gravel  miners;  several  streams, 
under  one  hundred  and  fifty  feet  of  pressure,  were  set  to 
playing  upon  the  mass  of  material;  down  rolled  rocks, 
trees  and  earth,  a  hundred  tons  at  a  time,  and  in  forty- 
eight  hours  the  gold  gravel  sluicer  had  cleared  the  road; 
the  track  was  replaced,  and  the  train  moved  on  amid  the 
cheers  of  the  liberated  passengers. 

The  Southern  Pacific  railroad  was  projected  as  early  as 
1845  by  New  Orleans  citizens.  The  construction  of  the 
road  was  an  enterprise  only  less  daring  than  that  of  its 


THE  BAKDIKGr  OF  THE  COOTIKE^T.  73 


predecessor.  The  Southern  Pacific  crosses  leagues  on 
leagues  of  hot  Sahara  desert  where  dew  and  rain  are 
rarely  found;  for  months  at  a  time  track-laying  had  to 
be  suspended  on  account  of  the  intolerable  heat;  the  tools 
became  so  hot  that  they  could  not  be  handled ;  water  for 
the  men  had  to  be  carried  in  tank-cars;  the  fierce  mounted 
Apaches — the  red  Arabs  of  that  desert  —  were  always 
hovering  near,  ready  to  strike  and  fly;  and  often  the  work 
of  days  was  obliterated  by  one  of  the  fierce  simooms,  or 
sand-storms,  which  so  darken  the  sun  at  midday  that 
through  the  twilight  gloom  the  red  glare  of  the  locomo- 
tive's head-light  penetrates  but  a  little  way.  Here  were 
indeed  no  snow-slides  to  be  encountered,  but  something  as 
baleful  and  obstructive;  and  the  miles  on  miles  of  sand- 
fence  of  the  Southern  Pacific  match  the  snow-sheds  of  the 
Central,  while  the  great  tunnel  of  the  latter  is  rivalled  by 
the  Tehacape  Pass  on  its  sister  road.  In  this  pass  the 
height  to  be  overcome  is  so  great  that  eight  miles  of  track 
were  laid  down  in  order  to  attain  a  distance  forward  of  one 
and  a  half  miles.  Once-and-a-half  around  the  hill  the 
track  curls  its  iron  lariat-loops,  then  doubles  on  itself  like 
a  closely  pursued  hare,  and  for  a  space  runs  straight 
backward  toward  its  starting-point  —  a  most  cunning  piece 
of  engineering  audacity. 

There  is  nothing  in  the  history  of  the  two  other  trans- 
continental railroads  that  calls  for  notice  in  such  a  work 
as  this.  The  history  of  the  Northern  Pacific  has  been  writ- 
ten by  Mr.  E.  V.  Smalley;  the  Canadian  Pacific  is  still 
unfinished.  On  March  8,  1884^  was  driven  the  last  spike 
in  the  Mexican  Central  railroad,  uniting  the  ancient  capi- 
tal of  the  Aztecs  to  New  York  and  Boston  by  a  continuous 
line  of  steel  rails.    "  Viva  la  Republica  cle  Mexico!"  cried 


74      WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 

the  American  Consul,  as  the  pilots  of  the  locomotives 
touched;  and  "Viva  los  Estados  Unidos  del  Norte!"  cried 
a  citizen  of  Mexico,  while  the  crowd  rent  the  air  with 
responsive  shouts  of  "Viva."  A  significant  ceremony,  cele- 
brating an  enterprise  that  portends  great  changes  in 
Mexico,  and  changes  undoubtedly  for  the  better! 

Among  scenic  mountain  roads  the  Denver  and  Eio 
Grande  holds  a  supreme  place  in  America.  It  is  also  a 
marvellous  piece  of  engineering  work.  The  construction 
of  the  road  was  undertaken  in  1870,  by  Mr.  W.  J.  Palmer 
and  others,  the  three-foot  gauge  being  adopted  as  one  better 
fitted  for  mountain  curves  than  the  ordinary  wider  gauge. 
The  road  may  be  called  an  Iron  Poem,  of  that  stern  mascu- 
line sort  that  our  Western  men  compose,  uttering  itself 
in  reverberated  thunder  up  there  amongst  the  clouds  and 
whirling  snow  of  the  summit  of  the  world;  a  stitch  stoutly 
sewed  into  the  green  kirtle  of  the  West;  a  bold  challenge 
of  Fate;  a  bearding  of  the  earth-giants  (how  nimbly  the 
little  black  steam-mice  run  over  their  faces  as  they  sleep!); 
a  road  of  weird  canons,  of  snowy  summits  old  in  story,  of 
u  tumbled  rock-piles  grim  and  red," 

These  reckless,  heaven-ambitious  peaks, 

These  gorges,  turbulent-clear  streams,  this  naked  freshness, 

These  formless  wild  arrays.  —  Whitman. 

Here,  west  of  Pueblo,  is  the  Grand  Canon  of  the  Arkan- 
sas, its  Royal  Gorge,  a  sort  of  Symplegades,  or  colossal 
gateway  with  towering  walls  of  gloom.  The  skull  of  the 
J5tun  cloven;  beneath,  the  green  ichor  of  the  rushing 
river;  aloft,  sheer  walls  of  granite,  half  a  mile  in  height; 
the  span  only  thirty  feet;  far  up,  a  light  canopy  of  blue; 
no  bird,  no  grass,  no  tree,  no  sound  but  the  roar  of  the 
stream  or  the  thunder  of  the  train  over  its  cliff-bolted, 


THE  BANTOKG  OF  THE  CONTINENT. 


75 


hanging  bridge;  while  streamlets  of  sweet  water  trickle 
down  the  seamed  walls,  and  fall  unheeded  into  the  foaming 
torrent.  Elsewhere  on  the  road  you  have  the  Black  Canon 
of  the  Gunnison,  with  its  flashing  cascades,  cliffs,  pinnacles, 
towers,  and  cloves,  and  its  strange  mountain-cone  of  red 
sandstone,  the  Currecanti  Needle.  And  there  are  the  roan- 
colored  mountains  ("Book  Mountains")  lifting  their  vast 
leaves  into  the  air;  and  Castle  Gate  towers  aloft  with  its 
posts  of  red  sandstone  five  hundred  feet  in  sheer  height. 
Then  through  the  Wahsatch  Mountains  you  go  down  to  the 
Salt  Lake  and  the  City  of  the  Saints. 

Such  are  some  of  the  wonders  of  the  railways  of  the  trans- 
Mississippi  country.  Chicago  is  not  only  the  great  railroad 
centre  of  this  region;  it  is  the  greatest  railroad  centre  in 
the  world.  The  National  Exposition  of  Eailway  Appliances 
held  there  in  May  and  June,  1883,  brilliantly  focussed  the 
railway  life  and  activity  of  the  whole  country.  It  was 
held  in  the  Inter-State  Exposition  Buildings  fronting  on 
Lake  Michigan,  and  covered  an  area  of  eleven  acres.  At 
night  that  Aladdin  genie,  Electricity,  flashed  out  his  terri- 
ble sun- white  eyes  in  a  thousand  places  at  once,  lighting  up 
weirdly  the  jets  of  water,  the  tropical  palms,  and  the  pol- 
ished steel  and  golden  brass  of  objects  displayed  in  every 
variety  of  fanciful  attitude.  Around  the  main  gallery  ran 
every  day  and  hour  the  cars  of  the  electric  railway,*  the 
baby-rival  of  steam,  and  perhaps  destined  to  supplant  it  in 
the  future.  Snow-ploughs,  monster  locomotives,  shops  in  full 
blast,  model  depots,  a  chime- whistle,  game  and  fish  and 
grain  from  the  North,  safety  signal-devices,  and  an  "Old 
Curiosity  Shop,"  containing  the  first  locomotives  used  in 
the  world,  were  some  of  the  tempting  baits  held  out  by  the 

*  Described  in  Chapter  IX. 


76      WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OP  THE  RAILWAY. 


managers  of  the  exhibition.  A  huge  locomotive  made  for 
steep-grade  work  on  the  Southern  Pacific  was  the  object  of 
general  admiration.  The  engine  weighs  sixty  tons,  is  sixty 
feet  long,  and  has  two  sets  of  cylinders  and  steam-chests. 
The  quaint  early  locomotives  excited  as  keen  an  interest  as 
do  the  old  iron-hooped  cannon  of  leather  and  wood,  used  at 
the  battle  of  Crecy,  for  the  one  are  as  antique  in  appearance 
as  the  other.  There  was  George  Stephenson's  "  Puffing 
Billy,"  the  veritable  engine,  the  first  ever  run  on  the  Stock- 
ton and  Darlington  railway,  and  loaned  to  the  Exposition 
by  the  Northeastern  Railway  Company  of  England.  Then 
there  was  the  first  Canadian  locomotive,  the  "  Sampson," 
brought  over  from  Durham  in  1838,  by  George  Dav- 
idson, for  use  in  a  Nova  Scotia  coal  mine.  And,  finally, 
there  was  on  exhibition  the  "Arabian,  No.  1,"  built  by 
Phineas  Davis  in  1834,  for  the  Baltimore  and  Ohio  rail- 


(By  courtesy  of  the  "  Railway  Age.") 
THE  " ARABIAN." 


THE  BAKDIKG  OF  THE  COKTINEKT. 


road,  and  having  the  fire-box  where  the  pilot  of  modern 
engines  is  placed.  This  old  relic  was  subsequently  destroyed 
by  fire  at  the  Pittsburgh  Exposition  of  1883,  to  the  great  sor- 
row of  antiquaries.  Among  the  "  Old  Guard"  of  engineers 
present  at  Chicago  were  Horatio  Allen,  David  Matthews 
(said  to  be  the  inventor  of  the  spark- arrester,  sectional 
chimney,  hand-car,  axle-box,  and  snow-plough,  as  well  as 
originator  of. the  plan  of  heating  water  in  the  tank  of  loco- 
motives by  means  of  steam-pipes,  and  of  the  device  of  using 
sand  on  the  rails) ;  Joseph  Whitehead,  first  fireman  on  the 
Stockton  and  Darlington  road  "  in  the  days  "  (as  he  said ) 
"when  a  strong  head-wind  used  to  bring  the  locomotives  to 
a  stop;"  and,  last  of  all,  old  Tom  Galloway,  who  for  over 
half  a  century  has  been  a  locomotive  engineer  on  the  Balti- 
more and  Ohio  railroad,  has  travelled  in  all  more  than  one 
million,  three  hundred  and  ninety-seven  thousand,  seven 
hundred  and  ninety-six  miles,  never  has  had  an  accident 
worth  mentioning,  and  is  still  as  hale  and  hearty  as  a 
mountaineer.* 

There  is  much  that  is  picturesque  and  startling  in  the 
railway  life  of  the  Great  West.  The  construction  of  the 
roads  has  always  been  attended  by  blood-shedding,  and  des- 
perate adventures  of  highway  robbers  and  cut-throats.  Nor 
was  it  a  particularly  enjoyable  thing  first  to  survey  a  rail- 
road and  then  construct  it,  and  run  the  first  trains  through 
a  region  infested  with  hostile  savages.  The  following  inci- 
dent will  suffice  for  many  similar  ones  that  might  be  nar- 

*  A  full  account  of  the  Railway  Exposition  of  1883  may  be  found  in  the  con- 
temporaneous issues  of  the  '^Railway  Age,"  of  Chicago,  edited  by  Mr.  E.  H. 
Talbott,  to  whose  energy,  as  well  as  that  of  Mr.  J.  McGregor  Adams,  much  of 
.the  success  of  the  Exposition  was  due.  It  was  Mr.  Talbott  who  first  broached 
the  idea  of  the  undertaking  in  his  journal.  A  pretty  good  critical  account  of 
the  various  appliances  exhibited  may  be  found  in  the  first  numbers  of  "Sci- 
ence,11 edited  at  Cambridge,  Massachusetts,  by  Mr.  Samuel  H.  Scudder. 


78     WOKDEES  AND  CUEIOSITIES  OF  THE  EAILWAY. 


rated  of  the  Indians  and  their  attacks  upon  railroad 
trains : 

On  the  30th  of  October,  1868,  as  a  freight  train  on  the 
Union  Pacific  railroad  was  steaming  leisurely  along,  about 
two  miles  west  of  Alkali  Station,  a  point  was  reached 
where  the  ties  had  been  cut  in  the  middle,  thus  spreading 
the  rails.  The  locomotive  was  immediately  derailed,  and 
the  cars  completely  wrecked,  while  out  of  the  prairie  grass 
on  either  side,  a  force  of  about  one  thousand  Sioux  and 
Cheyennes  suddenly  rose  up  in  the  darkness,  uttering  ter- 
rific yells.  One  of  the  firemen  was  jammed  in  between  the 
tender  and  locomotive,  and  for  three  hours  suffered  such 
horrible  tortures  that  he  implored  the  engineer  to  put  him 
out  of  his  misery.  All  the  brakemen  fled  at  the  first  alarm, 
but  the  engineer  refused  to  leave  his  fireman,  whom  he  was 
trying  to  extricate.  The  Indians  next  burned  the  railroad 
bridge  in  the  rear,  for  the  purpose  of  wrecking  the  passen- 
ger train  which  was  to  follow.  But  a  division  superinten- 
dent who  had  come  down  to  the  wreck  from  Alkali  Station 
on  a  locomotive,  and  fought  his  way  through  a  large  force 
of  Indians,  got  to  a  telegraph  station  further  on  in  time  to 
warn  the  approaching  train.  The  superintendent  also  tel- 
egraphed to  Fort  Sedgwick  for  troops;  but  before  the  cav- 
alry arrived  the  savages  had  fled. 

But  not  all  the  Indians  have  proved  dangerous  to  the 
railroads.  Many  of  them  have  actually  become  converted 
into  "paddies,"  working  even  better  than  the  Chinese,  and 
with  as  much  nonchalance  and  ease.  The  Minneapolis  and 
Omaha  railroad  employs  from  fifty  to  a  hundred  Winne- 
bagoes  and  Omahas  as  section  hands,  and  is  very  well  sat- 
isfied with  their  labor. 

An  amusing  Indian  story  is  told  of  a  young  man  from 


THE  BAKDIKG  OE  THE  COKTI^TENT.  79 


the  East  who  was  once  in  charge  of  a  locomotive  on  the 
construction  line  of  the  Atchison,  Topeka  and  Santa  Fe 
road,  below  San  Marcial.  One  day  the  young  engineer 
was  ordered  to  side-track  his  engine  at  Gramme,  and  wait 
for  the  passage  of  a  certain  construction-train.  Now  he 
had  devoured  with  eager  and  trembling  apprehension  the 
numerous  stories  of  Indian  depredations  that  were  afloat, 
and  while  waiting  on  his  siding  kept  a  sharp  lookout  for 
the  dreadful  savages.  His  vigilance  was  soon  repaid,  for 
at  last  he  beheld  a  party  of  Indians  well  armed  and  riding 
rapidly  toward  him.  To  leap  from  his  lookout  on  the 
tender  into  the  cab  of  the  engine  was  but  the  work  of  a 
second.  He  grasped  the  throttle-valve  and  shrieked  to  the 
fireman,  "Here  they  come!  fill  her  up!"  The  fireman 
was  startled  by  the  wild  expression  on  the  "tenderfoot's" 
face,  and  began  shovelling  in  the  fuel.  As  they  bowled 
rapidly  away  from  the  dangerous  spot  the  engineer  was 
congratulating  himself  a  thousand  times  on  his  easy  escape, 
when,  suddenly,  on  turning  a  curve,  his  engine  collided 
with  that  of  the  construction-train,  all  thought  of  which 
had  been  frightened  out  of  his  mind.  It  turned  out  that 
the  supposed  Indians  were,  in  all  probability,  Mexicans 
coming  to  the  place  for  water.  The  "tenderfoot"  en- 
gineer is  thought  to  have  returned  east,  a  sadder  but  a 
wiser  man. 

Forest  and  prairie  fires  in  the  trans-Mississippi  and 
northern  Michigan  regions  are  dangers  to  be  dreaded  by 
train  men.  The  injury  done  to  forests  by  sparks  from 
passing  locomotives  is  sometimes  vengefully  repaid  with 
interest  by  a  furious  conflagration  which  sweeps  down 
upon  and  devours  the  train  of  cars  attempting  to  rush 
through  it.    The  roar  of  the  fire-tempest  among  the  trees 


80      WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 

is  described  as  resembling  that  of  an  approaching  tornado, 
and  the  detonations  of  the  white-meated  hickories  sound 
like  the  cracking  of  a  giant's  whip.  This  is  accompanied  by 
a  hissing  like  the  sound  of  frying  salt,  as  the  green  foliage 
of  the  pines  is  swept  away  in  a  white  flash  of  flame,  while 
every  few  seconds  a  heavy  thunder-crash  announces  that 
some  forest  giant  has  measured  his  length  across  the  fiery 
bed.  Trains  of  cars  often  succeed  in  running  the  gauntlet 
at  full  speed,  and  with  wetted  roofs;  but  when  they  emerge 
they  are  generally  on  fire  in  several  places,  and  the  paint 
of  all  the  woodwork  is  cracked  and  peeled  by  the  heat. 

Terrific  tornadoes,  hail-storms,  and  water-spouts  con- 
stitute still  greater  danger  to  the  navigator  of  the  "  iron 
rivers"  that  span  the  western  plains.  At  Kiowa,  Kansas, 
in  the  year  1878,  a  locomotive  was  swept  from  a  rail- 
road embankment  by  a  water-spout,  and  lost  in  a  quick- 
sand; it  has  never  been  found.  In  the  summer  of  1880, 
the  town  of  Monotony,  on  the  Kansas  Pacific  railroad,  was 
visited  by  a  terrible  thunder-storm  and  water-spout;  over 
six  thousand  feet  of  track  were  washed  away,  and  the 
prairie  lay  eight  feet  under  water.  During  the  occurrence 
of  this  storm  an  entire  freight-train  was  lost.  It  has  never 
been  found, —  not  a  trace  of  it,— although  the  owners 
spent  two  thousand  five  hundred  dollars  in  the  search.  It 
is  supposed  that  the  train  was  swept  away  and  buried 
under  a  land-slip.  This  is  surely  one  of  the  strangest 
mishaps  ever  chronicled!  Some  future  geologist  may  have 
a  treasure-trove  in  this  buried  train,  or  in  its  impression 
on  the  rock. 

The  reader  will  be  interested  in  an  account  of  a  won- 
derful hail-storm  encountered  by  a  train  of  cars  in  Colo- 
rado: 


THE  BANDING  OF  THE  CONTINENT.  81 

At  Potter  Station,  on  the  Union  Pacific  railroad,  in 
the  autumn  of  1875,  a  train  was  just  pulling  out  from  the 
depot,  when  a  storm  began,  and  in  ten  seconds  there  was 
such  a  fury  of  hail  and  wind  that  the  engineer  deemed 
it  best  to  stop  the  locomotive.  The  hail-stones  were 
simply  great  chunks  of  ice,  many  of  them  three  or  four 
inches  in  diameter,  and  of  all  shapes, —  squares,  cones, 
cubes,  etc.  The  first  stone  that  struck  the  train  broke  a 
window,  and  the  flying  glass  severely  injured  a  lady  tin  the 
face.  Five  minutes  afterward  there  was  not  a  whole  light 
of  glass  on  the  south  side  of  the  train.  The  windows  in  the 
Pullman  cars  were  of  French  plate,  three-eighths  of  an 
inch  thick,  and  double.  The  hail  broke  both  thicknesses 
and  tore  the  curtains  into  shreds.  The  wooden  shutters, 
too,  were  smashed,  and  many  of  the  mirrors  were  broken. 
The  deck-lights  on  the  top  of  the  cars  were  also  demol- 
ished. The  dome  of  the  engine  was  dented  as  if  it  had 
been  pounded  with  a  heavy  weight,  and  the  wood- work 
on  the  south  side  of  the  cars  was  ploughed  as  if  some  one 
had  struck  it  all  over  with  sliding  blows  from  a  hammer. 
During  the  continuance  of  this  terrific  fusillade  (a  period 
of  twenty  minutes),  the  excitement  and  fear  among  some 
of  the  passengers  ran  high.  Several  ladies  fainted,  and 
the  wife  of  the  superintendent  of  the  Mountain  Division 
of  the  road  went  into  spasms,  from  which  she  did  not 
recover  for  over  an  hour  after  the  cessation  of  the  storm. 
Several  persons  sitting  on  the  south  side  of  the  cars  were 
more  or  less  injured  about  the  head  and  face.  As  soon  as 
the  storm  abated  a  little,  the  matting  from  the  car  floors 
was  hung  up  against  the  windows,  and  the  train  moved 
on,  the  wheels  crunching  through  hail-stones  drifted  so 

deep  as  to  impede  progress  for  some  miles.    At  the  next 
6 


82      WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 


station  strips  of  tin  were  procured  and  fastened  over  the 
windows  of  the  cars.* 

The  gigantic  snow-ploughs  f  of  the  western  railroads 
afford,  when  in  operation,  a  very  inspiriting  winter  spec- 
tacle. They  sometimes  weigh  as  much  as  fifty  tons.  One, 
owned  by  the  Chicago,  Bock  Island  and  Pacific  railroad, 
is  stationed,  when  in  use,  in  front  of  a  car  of  immense 
strength;  the  iron  shares  resemble  the  ram  of  a  war- 
vessel;  the  plough  is  hung  on  linked  timbers  attached  to  the 
car  behind,  and  is  raised  or  lowered  from  the  car-platform 
by  means  of  lever-screws;  behind  the  plough  are  two  heavy 
track-scrapers  manipulated  by  men  housed  within  a  win- 
dowed cab,  which  also  contains  a  stock  of  the  various  tools 
needed  to  clear  a  track  in  time  of  snow-drifts.  At  the 
Chicago  Exposition  was  shown  a  huge  plough,  consisting  of 
a  great  metal  screw  working  inside  an  iron  box.  On  the 
Toronto,  Grey  and  Bruce  railroad  this  novel  snow-plough 
opened  a  channel  through  a  cut  one  hundred  and  fifty  feet 
long,  filled  with  packed  ice  and  snow,  the  screw  hurling 
the  heavy  masses  to  a  distance  of  sixty  feet  on  either  side. 

Sometimes  on  the  Union  Pacific  a  plough  is  driven  by 
three,  six,  or  even  fourteen  engines.  It  is  a  magnificent 
spectacle  —  this  battle-charge  of  the  locomotives.  How  the 
earth  trembles  and  reels  as  with  screeching  of  whistles  and 
level-streaming  plumes  of  steam,  the  solid  line  of  engines 

*The  Denver  "News." 

+  The  first  successful  snow-plough  was  constructed  in  1836  for  the  Utica  and 
Schenectady  railroad ;  drawings  and  models  of  it  were  obtained  by  the  govern- 
ments of  Austria,  Prussia,  and  Russia.  Previous  to  this  but  few  efforts  had 
been  made  to  keep  the  tracks  clear  of  snow,  and,  as  a  consequence,  traffic  was 
almost  entirely  suspended  during  the  winter  months.  One  early  effort  to 
clear  the  track  was  made  by  attaching  brooms  to  a  rude  car-truck,  which  was 
pushed  along  from  behind  by  horses,  while  the  iron  horse  remained  snugly 
under  cover.  Compare  what  is  said  in  Chapter  II  about  the  rude  snow-scraper 
used  on  the  Quincy  railroad. 


THE  BANDING  OF  THE  CONTINENT. 


83 


rushes  onward  and  hurls  the  enormous  ram  into  the  mass  of 
ice  and  snow!  Perhaps  at  first  the  stubborn  compound 
.budges  not  a  foot.  Then  back,  and  at  it  again,  and  again, 
and  again  — until  at  last,. it  is  done!  The  mighty  avalanche 
is  torn  into  fragments,  and  right  onward  dash  the  victo- 
rious engines  with  impetuous  speed,  throwing  up  a  cloud  of 
snow  ten  feet  above  their  smoke-stacks,  and  never  stopping 
until  they  have  cut  a  half-mile  path  as  clean  as  a  sharp 
knife  cuts  a  honey-comb  —  while  perchance  the  belated 
passengers  send  up  cheer  after  cheer,  and  wave  their  hand- 
kerchiefs with  delight  as  they  witness  the  thrilling  spec- 
tacle.* 

There  have  been  several  instances  of  whole  trains  lost  in 
the  snow-storms  of  the  prairies.  In  December,  1872,  some 
three  hundred  and  fifty  passengers  occupying  several  trains 
on  the  Union  Pacific  road  were  snow-bound  for  two  weeks, 
between  Percy  and  Cheyenne  —  a  distance  of  only  one  hun- 
dred and  fifty  miles.  Tremendous  gales  had  swept  the  snow 
into  the  ravines  and  excavations  of  the  railroad;  snow- 
ploughs  continually  ran  off  the  track,  and,  in  short,  proved 
themselves  insufficient  to  cope  with  the  violent  gusts  of 
wind  and  the  rapidly  drifting  snow.  The  trains  had  an 
abundant  supply  of  coal,  wood  and  water,  and  the  railroad 
company  had  with  wise  foresight  attached  to  each  train 
before  starting,  special  cars  supplied  with  fuel,  lights  and 
blankets;  but  food  was  extremely  hard  to  get.  Those  who 
had  brought  their  baskets  of  delicacies  with  them  had  to 
meet  the  problem  of  making  five  days'  supply  stretch  over 
twenty  days.  The  restaurants  at  neighboring  stations  were 
speedily  bought  out  by  the  railroad  officials,  who  were  com- 
pelled to  feed  the  passengers  of  one  train  on  halibut  and 

*From  the  account  of  an  eye-witness. 


84     WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY, 


crackers,  while  others  got  black  coffee  and  bread,  and  occa- 
sionally some  lucky  one  procured  an  elk  or  antelope  steak. 
Whist-parties  and  story-telling  helped  pass  the  time  away, 
and  two  highly  successful  balls  were  held  in  the  back  room 
of  a  grocery  store,  the  music  being  furnished  by  a  guitar,  a 
mouth  harmonicon,  and  a  fine- tooth- comb! 

At  six  o'clock  on  the  morning  of  New  Year's  Day,  1864, 
a  train  on  the  Michigan  Central  railroad,  after  having  got 
about  seven  miles  out  on  the  prairies  from  Chicago,  plunged 
into  an  immense  snow-drift  lying  directly  across  the  track. 
At  first  the  powerful  engine  pushed  right  on,  scattering  the 
snow  in  glittering  clouds  to  the  right  and  the  left,  and 
seeming  as  if  it  would  pull  through  victoriously.  But  soon 
it  moved  with  great  difficulty,  and  at  last,  after  long  labor 
and  struggle,  stopped  short,  unable  to  gain  another  foot  of 
headway.  There  were  a  hundred  persons  in  the  train, 
many  of  them  women  and  children;  they  had  with  them 
nothing  but  light  lunches,  and  many  had  not  even  a  cracker. 
As  the  day  wore  on  they  tore  up  the  neighboring  fences  for 
fuel  for  the  stoves;  but  the  dry  wood  aided  by  the  gale  soon 
heated  stove  and  pipe  red-hot,  and  set  the  car-roof  on  fire. 
With  great  difficulty  this  was  extinguished ;  but  the  car  was 
now  uninhabitable,  and  the  passengers  were  all  huddled 
together  in  the  remaining  car.  It  was  now  two  o'clock  in 
the  afternoon,  and  the  possibility  of  a  terrible  death  began 
to  haunt  the  minds  of  the  snow-bound  travellers,  when 
(most  welcome  sight!)  a  passenger  train  on  the  Michigan 
Southern  line  appeared  at  a  crossing  some  four  hundred 
yards  off.  It  wassailed,  and  the  work  of  transferring  pas- 
sengers began.  The  drift  was  ten  feet  deep,  the  storm  at 
its  height,  and  the  cold  so  intense  that  the  faces  of  the 
women  and  children  were  frozen  almost  as  soon  as  they 


THE  BANDING  OF  THE  CONTINENT. 


85 


came  in  contact  with  the  wind,  "turning  white  almost  as 
quickly  as  if  they  had  been  plunged  in  boiling  water." 
Almost  everybody  was  badly  frost-bitten.  The  new  train 
was  itself  sixteen  hours  behind  time.  Some  wedding  cake 
discovered  in  the  cars  was  confiscated  to  the  necessities  of 
the  occasion,  and  the  train,  starting  afresh  with  its  double 
load,  was  soon  effectually  buried  in  a  drift,  the  wheels 
clogged  with  snow,  and  the  engine  frozen  up.  The  night 
was  coming  on,  and  something  must  be  done.  Two  strong 
men  volunteered  to  try  to  reach  the  city,  and  did  so,  after 
undergoing  great  toil  and  danger.  They  gave  the  alarm, 
and  sleighs  started  out  loaded  with  blankets  and  provisions; 
but  only  two  of  them  succeeded  in  getting  to  the  train. 
Having  unloaded,  the  drivers  started  at  eight  o'clock  at 
night  to  return  in  the  sleighs,  with  some  of  the  passengers. 
However,  after  travelling  for  a  short  time,  they  became 
conscious  that  they  were  lost  in  an  illimitable  labyrinth  of 
snow-drifts  running  in  every  direction  over  the  prairie.  In 
the  gloom  of  the  night  the  presence  of  a  drift  would  not  be 
discovered  until  the  horses  were  plunging  and  struggling  in 
it  up  to  their  sides;  both  sleighs  were  overturned  several 
times,  and  frequently  the  occupants,  both  men  and  women, 
were  compelled  to  get  out  in  the  deep  drifts  while  the  teams 
were  being  extricated.  Finally,  one  of  the  vehicles  broke 
down  entirely,  and  the  men  were  forced  to  trudge  along  on 
foot  in  snow  up  to  their  waists.  About  half  past  ten 
o'clock  they  saw  a  light;  it  was  found  to  proceed  from  the 
house  of  a  hospitable  German,  who  received  them  for  the 
night.  In  the  morning  they  found  that  they  were  only  half 
a  mile  from  the  train.  As  for  the  people  in  the  cars,  the 
beacon-lantern  they  had  hung  out  had  happily  served  to 
indicate  their  whereabouts  to  the  agent  of  the  railroad 


86      WOKDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 


company,  who  reached  them  about  ten  o'clock  p.m.,  with 
more  blankets  and  provisions.  The  passengers  accordingly 
passed  a  tolerable  night,  and  next  morning  were  brought 
back  to  the  city  in  sleighs. 

Another  still  more  curious  instance  occurred  in  1880,  in 
New  Jersey,  where  a  train  mysteriously  disappeared  in  a 
snow-storm,  and  was  not  found  for  two  days.  The  story 
runs  as  follows:  One  day  in  the  last  week  in  December,  a 
passenger  train  started  at  three  o'clock  p.m.  from  Penn's 
Grove,  on  the  Delaware  Eiver  railway,  its  destination 
being  Woodbury,  New  Jersey,  twenty  miles  distant.  When 
half  the  way  had  been  made,  huge  snow-drifts  were  encoun- 
tered, "  against  which  the  locomotive  bravely  and  fiercely 
butted,  plowing  its  way  through  light  drifts  which  some- 
times reached  to  the  tojo  of  the  smoke-stack."  Still  not 
much  headway  was  gained,  and  the  coal  on  the  tender  was 
being  rapidly  consumed, —  when  communication  was  opened 
with  the  president  of  the  road.  This  gentleman  sent  to  the 
conductor  the  following  plucky  despatch:  "Use  all  the 
fence-rails  you  can  lay  your  hands  on,  if  your  coal  gives 
out.  Throw  in  a  barn  or  two,  if  necessary.  If  that  fails, 
take  all  the  pork  offered  at  six  dollars  per  hundred.  Keep 
your  steam  up,  and  come  through  at  any  cost."  Instruc- 
tions were  obeyed,  and  Woodbury  was  reached  at  ten  p.m., 
a  funeral  cortege  having  been  waiting  for  the  train  there 
since  five  o'clock.  The  road  having  been  :  opened,  it  was 
determined  to  try  to  keep  it  so,  and  the  train  started  back 
at  midnight.  At  two  o'clock  it  stuck  in  a  drift;  telegraph 
wire  blown  down;  conductor  sends  messenger  across  the 
fields  with  despatch  asking  for  another  engine;  but  he  for- 
got to  state  where  he  could  be  found,  and  the  powerful 
engine  that  was  sent  out  got  lost  too.    In  fine,  both  train 


THE  BANDING  OF  THE  CONTINENT. 


87 


and  relief-engine  were  lost  sight  of  for  many  hours,  and 
were  finally  discovered  by  sleighs  sent  out  to  search  for 
them. 

During  the  tremendous  snow-storm  of  January  18  and 
19,  1881,  in  Great  Britain,  trains  in  every  part  of  the 
kingdom  were  blocked  up  or  snowed  under.  A  hearse 
carrying  a  body  to  be  buried  was  itself  buried  in  a  white 
shroud  of  snow;  a  man  and  cart  were  buried  alive,  and  a 
train  of  ten  cars  was  blockaded  in  a  cutting  between 
the  towns  of  Moulsford  and  Goring,  and  actually  snowed 
under,  so  that  only  the  funnel  of  the  locomotive  was  vis- 
ible; the  passengers  had  been  previously  removed. 

On  the  evening  of  December  6,  1882,  a  train  on  the 
little  Festiniog  mountain  road,  in  Great  Britain,  was  lost 
in  the  snow.  It  seems  that  as  the  dusk  of  evening  came 
on,  the  train  had  come  to  a  stand  still  and  large  quantities 
of  snow  were  blown  over  it,  extinguishing  the  engine's 
fires.  The  snow  drifted  in  some  places  to  a  depth  of 
twenty  feet,  and  thirty-six  hours  passed  before  a  relief 
force  of  two  hundred  men,  with  shovels  and  snow-ploughs, 
were  able  to  dig  out  passengers  and  cars  from  their  wintry 
burrow. 

One  other  point  must  be  mentioned  in  connection  with 
western  trunk-lines,  and  that  is  the  matter  of  standards 
of  time.  This  is  a  topic  that  could  only  arise  for  discussion 
in  a  country  having  very  long  east  and  west  distances 
within  its  limits.*  America  is  so  vast  that  her  railroads 
must  gauge  their  operations  by  the  movements  of  the 
globe  itself.  As  the  westward  flying  cars  creep  over  the 
green  curve  of  the  earth,  the  passengers  find  the  sun 

*In  England  there  is  no  such  thing  as  local  time.  The  standard  is  Green- 
wich, and  all  clocks  conform  to  it. 


88      WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 

rising  later  and  later  every  morning,  by  the  time  of  their 
watches.    This  fact,  taken  in  connection  with  the  contin- 
ually varying  standards  of  railroad  time,  becomes  very 
annoying,  especially  to  constant  travellers.    Until  the  re- 
cent Time-table  Convention,  in  Chicago  (October  11,  1883), 
there  were  fifty-three  different  standards  of  time  in  use  by 
the  various  railroads.    These  standards  differed  from  each 
other  by  all  sorts  of  odd  minutes,  and  the  points  on  east 
and  west  lines  where  one  standard  was  changed  for  an- 
other, were  almost  numberless.    At  the  Convention  alluded 
to,  an  admirable  system,  devised  by  Mr.  W.  F.  Allen,  was 
adopted  by  the  representatives  of  seventy-eight  thousand 
miles  of  railroads,  and  it  is  now  used  by  all  the  railroads  of 
the  United  States  and  Canada.    It  is  spoken  of  as  the  "  Hour 
System,"  for  it  divides  the  whole  country  into  four  great 
sections,  separated  from  each  other  by  north  and  south 
running  lines,  or  degrees  of  longitude,  which  are  just  one 
hour,  or  fifteen  degrees  apart.    The  roads  lying  chiefly  in 
any  one  section  adopt  the  time  of  that  section,  and  over 
eighty  per  cent  of  them  now  use  two  standards  instead  of 
forty.    Formerly,  in  travelling  from  Boston  to  Washington, 
one  had  to  make  use  of  six  standards  of  time, —  in  other 
words,  set  one's  watch  six  different  times  if  one  wished  to 
be  prompt  in  catching  trains.    Similarly,  the  fourteen  rail- 
roads centring  in  St.  Louis  happened  to  use  six  different 
standards.    Now,  by  the  new  system,  there  is  but  one  time 
for  all  railways  on  the  Atlantic  coast,  one  time  for  those  in 
the  interior,  etc.    More  explicitly,  the  sections  are  called 
the  "Eastern,"  the  "Central,"  the ,  "  Mountain,"  and  the 
"Western," — with  an  extra  section  added  for  the  benefit 
of  a  few  Canadian  roads,  such  as  the  Intercolonial.    In  the 
Canadian  section,  time  is  that  of  the  sixtieth  meridian  west 


THE  BANDING  OF  THE  CONTINENT. 


89 


from  Greenwich ;  in  the  Eastern,  the  seventy-fifth  meridian ; 
in  the  Central,  the  ninetieth  meridian;  in  the  Mountain,  the 
one  hundred  and  fifth;  and  in  the  Western,  the  one  hun- 
dred and  twentieth.  As  the  change  from  one  standard  to 
another  is  exactly  one  hour,  it  will  be  evident  that  in  going 
west  or  east  one's  watch  will  not  differ  in  the  minutes,  as 
one  passes  out  of  one  section  into  another.  For  instance,  if 
you  start  from  Boston  with  the  intention  of  calling  in  a 
couple  of  days,  at  quarter  past  ten  a.m.,  on  a  friend  in 
Buffalo,  you  will  simply  leave  your  watch  as  it  is,  and, 
guided  by  it,  call  at  quarter  past  nine,  allowing  one  hour's 
difference  for  change  of  longitude. 

In  the  new  system  the  places  where  changes  of  stand- 
ards occur  are  large  or  well  known  cities.  Up  to  April 
9,  1884,  seventy-eight  of  these  had  adopted  the  standard 
time.  The  time  fixed  for  the  first  change  of  clocks  was  Sun- 
day at  noon,  November  18,  1883.  According  to  the  official 
report  of  Mr.  W.  F.  Allen,  some  fifty  million  people  already 
use  the  new  standard.  It  is  evident  that  the  employment 
of  uniform  time  will  be  a  great  convenience  to  everybody 
concerned.  For  example,  if  all  cities  in  the  eastern  time- 
section  follow  the  example  of  the  principal  ones,  the  minute 
hands  of  all  the  public  time-pieces  in  Canada,  the  Atlantic 
Coast  States,  and  the  Middle  States  will  be  brought  into 
coincidence  with  each  other  and  with  railroad  time,  so  that 
all  clocks  in  this  vast  region  will  show  twelve  at  the  same 
instant. 


ohapt.ee  v. 


THE  LOCOMOTIVE  IN  SLIPPERS. 

rpHE  railway  system  in  the  East,  says  a  witty  modern 
traveller,  has  already  become  Orientalized.    "  It  has 
already  put  itself  into  slippers,- crossed  its  legs,  stmt  "its 
eyes,  and  taken  to  the  chibouque."    And  thank  heaven 
that  it  has  done  so!    Let  us  be  grateful  that  the  restless 
Saxon,  even  though  he  go  to  the  East  with  a  locomotive 
under  each  arm,  can  never  de-Orientalize '  that  land  of 
poppies  and  dreams.    We,  have  no  objection  to  urge  when 
we  read  that  the  first  locomotive  was  landed  in  1864,  at 
Ceylon,  by  means  of  a  bamboo  raft,  and  that  it  was  drawn 
to  the  railroad  by  a  team  of  three  elephants;  there  is  a 
certain  piquant  fitness  in  that.    And  we  are  resigned  to 
the  sleepy  railroads  of  Egypt.    But  we  do  wince  visibly 
when  anybody  mentions  the  railroad  now  in  operation 
from  Rome  to  Tivoli,  past  Hadrian's  Villa,  or  speaks  of  the 
iron  way  from. the  Pmeus  to  the  Acropolis,  or  shouts  in 
our  ear,  "Change  cars  for  Nazareth!"*    There  is  some 
relief,  however,  in  the  fact  that  the  Greek  railroad,  opened 
to  travel  in  1869,  was  discussed  for  thirteen  years  before 
it  could  be  built,  and  that,  although  the  Shah  of  Persia,  in 
1873,  after  his  visit  to  Europe,  conceded  to  Russia  and  to 
Baron  Renter  the  right  to  build  each  a  railroad  in  the 

*  A  railroad  route  has  been  surveyed  from  Acre  around  the  base  of  Carmel 
across  the  plain  of  Jezreel,  with  a  branch  to  Nazareth  twelve  miles  in  length 
and  down  the  valley  of  the  Jordan  to  Jericho,  with  a  branch  to  Bethlehem  and 
Jerusalem, 

90 


THE  LOCOMOTIVE  IK  SLIPPEBS. 


91 


land  of  roses  and  of  wine,  and  although  some  miles  of 
earthworks  were  actually  thrown  up  at  Eesht  in  Septem- 
ber, 1873,  yet,  after  all,  the  Shah  had  the  good  taste  to 
back  out  of  the  bargain,  and  revoke  his  concessions.  If 
the  locomotive  must  supplant  the  Jinnee  in  the  East,  let 
the  conception  be  leisurely  evolved  out  of  the  Oriental 
mind,  and  practically  embodied  in  a  genuine  Oriental 
manner. 

So  pleads  the  antiquarian  in  us.  But  when  we  see  what 
the  Saxon  railroad  is  doing  in  Japan  and  India,  we  are 
forced  to  look  at  the  subject  in  a  different  light.  The 
reason  then  takes  part  against  the  fancy,  and  one  is  obliged 
to  admit  the  desirability  of  the  Western  institution  .as  a 
civilizing  agent  in  Asia. 

It  was  a  foregone  conclusion  that  the  Japanese  would.be 
the  first  to  adopt  the  railroad.  The  first  one  in  the  Mikado's 
empire,  the  Tokio  and  Yokohama,  was  built  by  the  Eng- 
lish, and  was  opened  with  imposing  ceremonies  October 
14,  1872.  "On  that  day,"  says  Mr.  Griffis,  "the  sun  rose 
cloudlessly  on  the  Sunrise  Land.  Fuji  blushed  at  dawn 
out  of  the  roseate  deeps  of  space,  and  on  stainless  blue 
printed  its  white  magnificence  all  day  long,  and  in  the 
mystic  twilight  sunk  in  floods  of  golden  splendor,  resting  at 
night  with  its  head  among  the  stars.  On  that  auspicious 
day,  the  Mikado,  princes  of  the  blood,  court  nobles,  the 
flowery  'nobility'  of  ex-daimios,  and  guests  representing  the 
literature,  science,  art,  and  arms  of  Japan,  in  flowing  pic- 
turesque costume;  the  foreign  Diplomatic  Corps,  in  tight 
cloth  smeared  with  gold;  the  embassadors  of  Liu  Kiu,  the 
Aino  chiefs,  and  officials  in  modern  dress,  made  the  proces- 
sion, that,  underneath  arches  of  camellias,  azaleas,  and 
chrysanthemums,  moved  into  the  stone-built  dep&t,  and, 


92      WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OP  THE  RAILWAY. 

before  twenty  thousand  spectators,  stepped  into  the  train. 
It  was  a  sublime  moment,  when,  before  that  august  array 
of  rank  and  fame  and  myriads  of  his  subjects,  the  one 
hundred  and  twenty- third  representative .  of  the  imperial 
line  declared  the  road  open.  The  young  emperor  beheld 
with  <!eep  emotion  the  presence  of  so  many  human  beings. 
As  the  train  moved,  the  weird  strains  of  the  national  hymn 
of  Japan,  first  heard  before  the  Eoman  empire  fell  or  Char- 
lemagne ruled,  were  played.  Empires  had  risen,  flourished 
and  passed  away  since  those  sounds  were  first  attuned-  To- 
day Japan,  fresh  and  vigorous,  with  new  blood  in  her 
heart,  was  taking  an  upward  step  in  life." 

Another  railroad  line  runs  from  Osaka  in  Niphon  to  the 
port  of  Kobe.  It  has  three  or  more  tunnels,  and  huge  ter- 
minal yards.  The  engineers  are  English  and  Scotch,  but 
the  subordinate  offices  are  filled  by  the  natives.  This  is  true 
also  of  the  Yokohama  road,  where  the  guards,  or  brakemen, 
are  mostly  "  Samourai "— men  of  good  birth  — and,  dressed 
in  the  most  approved  uniform,  perform  all  the  duties  of 
their  road  in  a  very  satisfactory  manner,  and  have  learned 
to  jump  in  and  out  of  trains  while  in  motion  quite  as  well 
as  American  brakemen.  An  English  traveller  speaks  of 
the  guard  on  one  of  the  trains  as  blowing  his  whistle  and 
waving  his  signal  for  departure,  to  the  grave  spectacled 
engineer,  with  as  much  self-importance  as  though  ordering 
a  cavalry  brigade  to  the  charge.  The  natives  always  take 
off  their  clogs  on  the  platform  and  carry  them  inside  the 
cars  in  their  hands.  It  is  said  to  be  amusing  to  see  how, 
when  travelling,  the  young  Japanese  swells  try  to  assume 
an  air  of  nonchalance,  as  if  they  had  been  used  to  railroads 
all  their  life.  The  cars  are  of  American  pattern,  with  cen- 
tral aisle.    The  Japanese  take  wonderfully  to  travel  by 


THE  LOCOMOTIVE  1ST  SLIPPEES. 


93 


steam.  They  scorn  a  jinriksha  when  they  can  ride  behind 
the  iron  steed.  Every  train  is  crowded,  especially  on  Sun- 
days, and  pilgrims  bound  for  the  capital  from  Mount  Fuji 
or  Oyama  hail  with  joy  the  foreign  engine  and  train  wait- 
ing for  them  at  Kanagawa,  for  the  railroad  saves  them 
many  a  weary  day's  travelling,  and  much  cash  besides.  The 
Japanese  take  great  delight  in  the  rapid  movement  of  the 
train,  and  although  the  novelty  has  now  worn  off,  there 
are  still  many  who  travel  over  the  road  solely  for  the 
sake  of  the  agreeable  sensations  experienced.  There  is,  as 
yet,  only  one  American-built  railroad  in  the  empire,  the 
road  from  Otarunai  Harbor  at  Yezo,  to  the  Paroni  coal 
fields. 

The  first  and  only  railroad  in  China  had  an  existence  of 
twelve  months.  It  was  built  by  Messrs.  Jardine,  Matheson 
and  Company,  of  Shanghai,  and  extended  from  that  city  to 
Woosung,  a  few  miles  distant.  The  company  could  procure 
no  compulsory  power,  and  had  to  spend  a  great  deal  of 
money  in  the  purchase  of  land  and.  graves.  The  great  ob- 
jection brought  against  the  enterprise  by  the  Chinese  was 
that  it  would  depreciate  the  value  of  property  in  its  neigh- 
borhood, and  disturb  the  spirits  of  the  earth  and  air.  But, 
as  a  matter  of  fact,  property  along  the  line  increased  in 
value  from  the  very  first  day  (February  14,  1876)  that  the 
little  engine  drew  a  train  of  cars.  Thousands  flocked  to  see 
the  construction  and  the  subsequent  operation  of  the  road. 
It  was  fairly  blocked  with  traffic,  and  was  worked  at  a 
profit  for  one  year,  when,  by  the  advice  of  the  ''statesman  " 
Li  Hung  Chang,  the  Chinese  government  bought  out  the 
concern,  and  packed  off  the  plant  and  rolling  stock  to  For- 
mosa, the  Governor  of  which,  Ting  Futai,  had  a  great 
desire  to  possess  a  railroad.    But  as  no  engineers  went 


94     WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OE  THE  RAILWAY. 


with  the  material,  it  was  landed  on  the  coast  in  such  a 
damaged  condition  as  to  be  useless  to  the  natives,  even  if 
they  had  known  how  to  employ  it. 

In  India  the  days  of  the  palankeen  and  cooly,  the  bul- 
lock-cart and  pony-post  have  long  been  numbered.  In  1854 
thirty-seven  miles  of  railroad  were  opened  between  Cal- 
cutta and  Pundoah,  and  since  that  time  thousands  of  miles 
have  been  built,  and  the  whole  northern  part  of  the  penin- 
sula is  now  netted  with  railways.  It  is  recorded  that  an 
elephant  once  charged  upon  a  locomotive  while  it  was  draw- 
ing a  train  of  cars.  The  result  was  very  bad  for  the 
elephant,  as  George  Stephenson  would  have  said.  The 
animal  apparently  recognized  in  the  iron  mammoth  the 
creature  that  was  to  supplant  Jiimself  as  a  beast  of  burden; 
but  his  defeat  was  significant  and  ominous.  The  elephant, 
it  is  to  be  feared,  is  doomed  in  India. 

The  stations  are  strongly  built,  generally  in  the  Swiss 
style,  and  by  a  wise  foresight  are  made  strong  enough  to 
serve  as  a  cordon  of  military  posts  in  case  of  another  native 
insurrection,  like  that  of  the  famous  Sepoy  rebellion.  In 
some  few  cases,  stations  are  only  native  bungalows,  with 
picturesque  thatched  roof.  At  first,  telegraph  lines  were 
supported  on  palm  trunks,  and  when  these  took  root  and 
persisted  in  putting  forth  their  feathery  foliage  at  the  top, 
they  looked  very  pretty.  But  the  wind  and  the  rain  played 
havoc  with  them,  and  so  did  the  natives  who  kept  climbing 
up  to  whisper  messages  to  the  mysterious  singing  wire!  So 
also  did  the  white  ants  prove  destructive,  and  how  posts  of 
wood  are  supplanted  by  columns  of  solid  masonry.  The 
East  Indian  railroad,  from  Calcutta  to  Benares,  might  be 
called  the  brick  and  iron  road.  For  in  order  to  guard 
against  the  ravages  of  fire  and  insects,  the  ties,  the  car- 


THE  LOCOMOTIVE- LET  SLIPPERS. 


95 


roofs,  and  the  telegraph  poles  are  of  iron,*  while  track-bal- 
last, stations,  fences,  and  house-roofs  are  of  brick. 

As  a  matter  of  course  the  cars  are  well  ventilated,  and 
the  conductors  rejoice  in  white  jackets  and  tall  pith  helmets. 
On  the  long  trunk  lines,  such  as  that  between  Calcutta  and 
Madras,  the  first-class  cars,  which  are  the  only  ones  that  well- 
to-do  foreigners  ever  travel  in,  are  so  made  that  they  can 
be  converted  into  sleeping  cars.  Each  car  contains  two 
compartments,  and  each  compartment  lias  a  cushioned  settee 
down  either  side,  with  a  third  crosswise  along  one  end;  the 
other  end  is  occupied  by  a  washing  closet  with  shower-bath. 
Gentlemen  always  carry  with  them  a  counterpane  padded 
with  wool,. and  a  small  pillow  or  two.  At  night  the  settee 
is  converted  into  a  sleeping  berth  by  the  aid  of  the  counter- 
pane and  pillows.  At  daybreak  the  train  stops  to  allow 
passengers  time  to  eat  the  chot a- ha zare,  or  early  breakfast, 
and  inhale  the  cool,  dewy  air  before  the  intolerable  heat 
begins.  Etiquette  permits  ladies  and  gentlemen  to  appear 
during  this  meal  in  the  light  sleeping  costume  always  worn 
by  through  travellers.  After  the  early  breakfast  comes  the 
bath,  dressing,  and  reading  of  the  novel  or  newspaper. 
Native  gentlemen  used  to  travel  first-class,  but  they  made 
themselves  such  a  nuisance  to  the  English  ]ady  passengers 
by  chewing  pan,  smoking  their  hookahs,  and  removing  their 
clothing  above  their  waists,  that  they  were  quarrelled  with 
by  English  gentlemen,  and  soon  by  tacit  agreement  they 
learned  to  take  the  second-class  cars,  where  they  make 
themselves  disagreeable  to  English  clerks  and  soldiers  only. 

It  is  the  native  traveller,  however,  who  offers  the  most 
curious  study  to  the  stranger.      Natives  in  immense  num- 

*  For  a  similar  reason  the  engineer  of  the  San  Paulo  railroad  in  Brazil  has 
made  use  of  discarded  iron  rails  for  telegraph  poles. 


96     WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 


bers  use  the  railroad,  and  almost  all  travel  third  or  fourth- 
class.  Undoubtedly  the  railroads  of  India  are  invaluable  as 
helping  to  mitigate  the  horrors  of  famine;  but  a  still 
greater  boon  conferred  by  them  is  the  influence  they  exert 
in  the  obliteration  of  caste.  The  native  brahmin,  or  high- 
caste  man  must  travel,  and  as  a  rule,  he  has  not  money 
enough  to  pay  for  any  but  a  third  or  fourth-class  ticket. 
But  in  a  car  where  human  beings  are  packed  together  like 
animals,  the  caste-prejudices  of  the  native  have  to  be  kept 
in  the  background.  Hence  it  is  that  in  India  the  division- 
lines  of  caste  begin  to  be  less  strongly  marked. 

The  scenes  enacted  at  the  more  frequented  railway  sta- 
tions of  India  remind  one  of  the  embarkation  of  our  plan- 
tation negroes  upon  the  southern  river-steamboats.  The 
swart  Hindoos  arrive  at  the  station  four  or  five  hours 
before  the  starting  of  the  train.  They  are  always  accom- 
panied to  the  depot  by  friends,  or  dependants,  numbering 
from  two  hundred  to  three  hundred,  and  the  peasant,  if  his 
stay  abroad  is  to  be  for  a  week  or  so,  often  fetches  along  a 
bag  of  rice,  one  of  flour,  a  supply  of  ghee  (or  clarified  but- 
ter), and  a  small  donkey-load  of  sugar-cane;  for  he  has  heard 
that  provisions  are  dear  where  he  is  going,  and  he  chuckles 
at  his  foresight  in  taking  his  supplies  with  him.  But  the 
poor  fellow  finds  at  the  last  moment  that  the  freight  charges 
are  such  as  to  turn  the  scales  the  other  way;  he  cannot, 
however,  throw  away  his  provisions,  and  so  pays  the  bill 
with  a  heavy  heart,  and  many  groans  and  maledictions. 
There  are  often  as  many  as  one  or  two  thousand  natives 
at  a  station  awaiting  the  arrival  of  a  train.  They  are  not 
admitted  within  doors  until  about  an  hour  before  the  train 
starts.  So  they  squat  on  their  hams  outside  in  the  sun, 
chewing  sugar-cane,  eating  sweatmeats,  and  chatting  with 


THE  LOCOMOTIVE  IK  SLIPPEES.  97 

those  who  have  come  to  see  them  off.  The  noise,  confusion, 
and  stench  are  something  wonderful.  When  the  ticket- 
office  is  opened  the  clatter  of  voices  rises  into  a  wild 
uproar  as  the  crowd  rushes  in,  each  man  fighting  his  way 
forward  as  best  he  can.  When  a  native  from  the  back 
country  presents  himself  at  the  ticket-window  he  is  told  that 
his  fare  to  such  a  place  is,  say  one  rupee  six  annas.  Now 
he  has  all  his  life  been  accustomed  to  have  one  price  asked 
him,  and  to  pay  another,  and  the  state  of  mind  of  the 
English  official  may  be  imagined  when  he  is  asked  if  he 
will  not  take  one  rupee  two  annas  for  the  ticket.  If  the 
native  does  not  come  instantly  to  terms  he  gets  a  rap  from 
the  stick  of  the  policeman  who  stands  near  by  in  order  to 
expedite  matters.  The  Hindoo  next  rushes  to  the  freight 
agent  to  get  his  baggage  weighed ;  and  there  again  he  tries 
to  beat  down  the  price  asked.  In  the  mean  time  the  train 
has  arrived,  and  is  now  ready  to  start.  But  the  locomo- 
tive whistles  and  the  station-bell  rings  in  vain;  only  one- 
half  of  the  crowd  is  yet  aboard.  If  one  of  them  wishes  to 
find  a  friend  in  the  crowd  he  raises  so  terrific  a  yell  for 
him  —  calling  him  by  name — that  the  sound  drowns  even 
the  locomotive  whistle.  It  is  usually  half  an  hour  after 
the  advertised  time  before  the  last  man  is  in  his  place  and 
the  train  moves  off.  There  are  no  seats  in  the  cars  occu- 
pied by  the  natives;  they  all  squat  on  the  floor,  first  strip- 
ping themselves  to  the  waist.  "  The  third  and  fourth-class 
cars,"  says  an  anonymous  writer,  "  are  one  and  all  distin- 
guished by  the  quiet  and  the  fragrance  of  a  monkey-house, 
the  roominess  of  a  herring-barrel,  and  all  the  picturesque- 
ness  derivable  from  an  endless  welter  of  bare  brown  arms 
and  legs,  shaven  crowns,  and  shaggy  black  hair,  white  cloaks, 

red  wrappers,  blue  or  scarlet  caps  and  turbans,  grinning 
7 


98      WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 


teeth,  rolling  black  eyes,  and  sharp-pointed  noses  adorned 
with  silver  rings  so  huge  that  you  feel  tempted  to  seize 
them  and  give  them  a  double  knock, —  all  exhaling  a  min- 
gled perfume  of  cocoanut  oil  and  overheated  humanity 
sufficient  to  knock  down  a  fireman."  It  must  be  noted 
that  the  Indian  railway  companies  do  not  allow  any  rough 
treatment  of  the  natives  by  officials,  since  the  greater  part 
of  their  income  is  derived  from  them. 

There  are  very  few  railroads  in  Africa.  In  1880  a 
survey  was  made  for  a  trans- Sahara  railway.  The  prac- 
ticability of  a  route  some  two  hundred  kilometres  south 
of  El  Golea  was  demonstrated.  A  reasonable  amount  of 
water  and  a  good  deal  of  vegetation  was  discovered. 
There  is  a  railroad  between  Tunis  and  Goletta,  the  cars 
of  which  have  covered  balconies  at  the  sides,  where  pas- 
sengers may  sit  in  the  shade,  and  enjoy  the  cool  breeze 
and  the  prospect.  In  order  to  be  .  convinced  that  the 
Oriental  repose  has  not  been  destroyed  by  the  railway, 
you  have  only  to  travel  in  Egypt  over  the  road  from 
Alexandria  to  Cairo.  About  the  station  every  one  moves 
slowly  and  gently,  as  if  overpowered  with  drowsiness. 
There,  in  the  luggage-department  is  a  dark  fellow  with 
red  fez  who  stalks  about  with  nose  in  air,  and  pays 
no  attention  whatever  to  the  clamors  of  the  public  for 
tickets  and  parcels;  here  are  water-carriers,  with  their 
porous  earthen  jars;  vendors  of  oranges  and  sugar-cane, 
and  men  and  women  selling  curds,  heads  of  lettuce,  and 
coarse  dark  bread,  all  of  which  are  eagerly  purchased  by 
the  Egyptian  passengers.  While  you  are  conversing  with 
an  English  engineer,  who,  in  a  voice  as  hoarse  as  that 
of  a  stage-tyrant,  informs  you  that  he  caught  cold  last 
week  from  being  tipped,  engine  and  all,  into  the  Nile? 


THE  LOCOMOTIVE  lis  SLIPPERS. 


99 


owing  to  the  submergence  of  an  embankment — all  at  once 
a  native  employe  rings  a  large  dinner-bell,  which  he  has 
been  holding  on  his  shoulder;  a  guard  in  red  fez  and  red 
sash  closes  the  car-door;  "the  blue  gowns  and  bare  feet, 
the  water-jugs  and  palm-mats,  and  prayer-carpets,  and  tins, 
and  brass  waiters,  are  all  stowed  away,"  and  without  any 
whistling  or  puffing,  the  locomotive  slides  quietly  out  from 
the  shadowy  station  into  the  intense  white  sunshine,  and 
trundles  sluggishly  along  over  its  elastic  road-bed. 

Perhaps  your  travelling  companion  is  some  "imper- 
turbable old  Turk  in  turned-up  red  slippers  and  a  swelter- 
ing curry-powder- colored  pelisse,  with  grizzly  beard,  and 
a  huge  sealing-wax-looking  signet-ring,  mounted  in  silver, 
on  the  rugose  forefinger  of  his  right  hand.  And,  per- 
chance, in  a  wash-leather  bag,  in  the  breast-pocket  of  his 
third  jacket,  he  may  carry  a  large  chased  gold  watch,  to 
which  he  will  occasionally  apply  his  tawny  old  eyes."  At 
all  the  way-stations  you  pass  there  is  a  great  demand  for 
water  for  the  washing  of  hands.  After  a  time  the  train 
stops  for  dinner.  An  English  traveller  has  thus  described 
a  dinner  which  he  ate  at  a  small  Egyptian  railway-station: 

"  The  dinner  at  the  restaurant  was  very  bad,  and  ludi- 
crously dear;  beef  ligneous  in  fibre,  greasy  swabs  of  cab- 
bages, dates  thick  with  flies,  were  not  redeemed  by  the 
neatness  of  the  room  or  the  care  of  the  waiters.  The 
place  was  an  outhouse;  the  butcher,  with -a  goat  on  his 
shoulders,  bullied  through  us  on  the  way  to  his  slaughter- 
house; the  dirty  Arab  servants  bounced  against  each  other 
as  they  ran  about.  The  only  redeeming  point  of  the  din- 
ner,—  nay,  its  sweet  crowning, —  was  the  concluding  dish, 
the  mish-mish,  a  common,  but  great  delicacy  in  Egypt.  It 
consists  of  dried  apricots,  seasoned  with  scented  little  clubs 


100   WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 


of  cloves,  and  delicious  little  papyri  rolls  of  Indian  cinna- 
mon."  And  now,  while  the  reader  is  smacking  his  lips 
over  this  toothsome  dish,  we  must  unceremoniously  leave 
him,  and  leap  at  once  from  Africa  into  Europe,  in  order 
to  prepare  the  next  chapter,  which  is  to  deal  with  the 
peculiar  features  and  picturesque  incidents  of  Continental 
railway  travel. 


CHAPTER  VI. 


A  MOSAIC  OF  TRAVEL. 


T  is  doubtless   largely  owing   to  the  vast  distances 


traversed,  and  to  the  comparatively  undeveloped  state 
of  the  country,  that  travel  by  rail  in  Russia  so  closely 
resembles  that  in  the  United  States.  It  was  not  to  be  sup- 
posed that,  living  in  a  horribly  cold  climate,  the  Russians 
would  deliberately  adopt  the  English  car,  when  they  had 
before  their  eyes  the  warm,  roomy,  and  elegant  saloon-cars 
of  America.  On  the  contrary,  they  have  not  only  adopted 
our  system,  but  they  have  surpassed  it;  and  to-day,  on 
such  a  road  as  the  great  line  between  St.  Petersburg  and 
Moscow,  railway  travel  has  apparently  reached  perfection, 
as  far  as  respects  luxurious  appointments  and  furnishings. 
The  saloon-cars  are  of  great  length  (like  our  Wagner 
coaches).  In  the  centre  is  a  drawing-room,  with  tables, 
sofas,  and  divans.  Opening  from  one  side  of  this  is  a 
passage-way  leading  the  entire  length  of  the  car  to  the 
iron  platforms,  which  are  inclosed  with  railings.  The 
cars  are  heated  by  steam-pipes  running  from  an  upright 
boiler  and  furnace  at  one  end.  Pushing  aside  heavy  cur- 
tains you  behold  three  pleasant  little  private  compart- 
ments, each  containing  six  easy  chairs  (the  fauteuil  lit). 
The  same  car  contains  three  similar  compartments  reserved 
for  ladies.  There  is  a  light  luggage-net  for  every  trav- 
eller. A  winding  staircase  leads  to  a  second  story  or 
sleeping-saloon,  affording  from  its  windows  a  fine  view  of 


101 


102    WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OE  THE  RAILWAY. 

the  country  along  the  route.  Over  the  passage-way  is  a 
long  receptacle  for  bundles  and  portmanteaus.  The  cars 
have  double  windows  and  closely  fitting  doors;  are  well 
ventilated  through  the  roof,  and  are  provided  with  hand- 
some toilet-rooms,  portable  card-tables,  wax  candles,  chess, 
draughts,  cards,  and  books.  The  train  halts  at  convenient 
intervals,  at  stations  with  clean,  wide  platforms,  and  with 
refreshment-rooms  the  cheapest  and  best  supplied  in 
Europe.  Everything  is  clean  and  bright  in  these  restaur- 
ants, and  the'  cheer  furnished  consists  of  tea,  coffee,  wines, 
liqueurs,  beef,  ducks,  partridges,  venison,  sturgeon,  ca- 
viare, etc.,  all  served  by  polite  and  nimble  waiters.  Enough 
has  been  said,  doubtless,  to  convince  the  American  reader 
that  travel  in  Eussia  does  not  now  necessarily  mean  riding 
in  an  open  sledge  with  the  thermometer  at  thirty  degrees 
below  zero,  and  the  cold  wind  .curdling  your  blood  and 
fumbling  at  your  heart-strings,  while  the  sleet  creeps 
under  your  furs  and  pelts  you  in  the  face,  and  a  pack  of 
wolves  is  howling  in  your  rear  ready  to  devour  both  horse 
and  man.  On  the  contrary,  the  journey  from  Moscow  to 
St.  Petersburg  is  so  comfortable  a  proceeding  that  many 
Eussians  of  wealth  (loungers  and  idlers)  often  travel  back 
and  forth  between  the  two  cities  for  the  entertainment 
they  receive  in  the  cars  and  in  the  restaurants  by  the  way. 

In  the  neighboring  country  of  Scandinavia,  the  locomo- 
tive goes  at  a  very  leisurely  pace;  in  other  respects  there 
is  not  much  that  calls  for  notice.  In  Norway  the  cars  are 
of  the  English  pattern,  with  doors  opening  at  the  sides, 
and  a  tank  of  drinking  water  is  placed  above  the  seats  and 
between  the  two  compartments  of  each  car,  with  the 
refreshing  block  of  ice  visible  through  the  glass  side  of 
the  box  or  tank. 


A  MOSAIC  OF  TRAYEL. 


103 


In  Sweden  the  railroads  are  government  property ;  the 
road-beds  are  excellent,  and  the  stations  marvels  of  neat- 
ness.   Paul  Du  Chaillu  has  written  an  agreeable  account 
of  a  Swedish  railway  refreshment-room:    "In  the  centre 
of  a  spacious  room,  the  floor  of  which  was  spotless,  was  a 
large  table  covered  with  a  snowy  cloth,  upon  which  was 
displayed  a  variety  of  tempting  dishes,  including  large  fish 
from  the  lakes,  roast  beef,  lamb,  chicken,  soup,  potatoes, 
and  other  fresh  vegetables,  different  kinds  of  bread,  pud- 
dings, jellies,  sweet  milk,  cream,  butter,  cheese,  and  the 
never-failing  butter-milk,  which  many  ate  first  and  before 
the  soup.    Every  article  of  food  was  cooked  to  a  turn,  and 
the  joints  were  hot,  having  just  been  taken  off  the  fire. 
Piles  of  warm  plates,  with  knives,  forks,  and  napkins,  lay 
ready  to  the  traveller's  hand ;  and  the  whole  aspect  of  the 
place  was  tidy,  cheerful,  and  appetizing;  one  might  have 
fancied  a  banquet  had  been  spread  for  a  private  party. 
The  purveyors  had  been  advised  by  telegraph  of  the  exact 
time  of  our  arrival,  and,  as  the  railway  trains  are  punc- 
tual, unless  delayed  by  sudden  snow-storms  or  accidents, 
all  was  in  readiness  for  us.    I  was  much  interested  in 
observing  the  manners  of  the  travellers;   there  was  no 
confusion.    The  company  walked  around  the  central  table, 
selected  from  the  dishes  they  liked  best,  and  then  taking 
knives,  forks,  spoons,  and  napkins,  seated  themselves  at  the 
little  marble  tables  scattered  in  the  room,  rising  when  they 
desired  to  help  themselves  again.    I  noticed  particularly 
the  moderation  of  the  people ;  the  portion  of  food  each  one 
took  was  not  in  excess  of  that  which  would  have  been  served 
at  a  private  table;   and  every  person  in  the  company 
seemed  to  remember  that  his  neighbor  also  might  fancy 
the  dish  of  which  he  partook.    The  sale  of  ardent  spirits 


104   WONDERS  AID  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 

in  the  railway  stations  being  forbidden  by  the  government, 
only  beer  or  light  wines  could  be  procured,  and  these  were 
served  by  alert  and  tidy  young  girls.  From  a  large  coffee- 
urn  placed  upon  a  table,  the  travellers  helped  themselves 
to  that  beverage;  milk  was  provided  without  charge. 

"  The  dinner  concluded,  and  the  given  period  of  twenty 
minutes  having  expired,  we  stepped  up  to  a  desk  to  pay 
the  reckoning,  which  was  received  by  the  girls.  The  price 
charged  for  this  excellent  meal  was  thirty-two  cents;  an 
additional  sum  of  six  cents  was  charged  for  the  bottled 
beer.  I  observed  that  the  word  of  each  guest  was  taken 
without  question  as  to  the  quantity  of  wine,  beer,  or  coffee 
he  had  consumed,  and  no  one  was  at  the  door  to  watch 
the  people  going  out." 

As  one  might  expect,  railway  travel  in  Germany  is  very 
slow,  very  uncomfortable,  but  very  safe.  The  charters  of 
most  of  the  railroads  were  granted  under  the  condition  that 
at  the  end  of  thirty  years  the  government  might  exercise  the 
right  of  purchasing  and  operating  them.  The  majority  of 
th  em  have  already  come  into  the  hands  of  the  government, 
and  it  is  the  policy  of  Bismarck  to  get  them  all  into  the 
control  of  the  executive  power.  There  are  advantages  in 
having  the  strong  restraining  hand  of  government  on  the 
railways.  One  of  these  advantages  is  the  thorough  and 
permanent  construction  of  road-beds.  It  is  astonishing 
but  true  that  in  Germany  not  a  single  accident  has  ever 
occurred  from  the  breaking  of  a  rail,  for  the  government 
compels  the  companies  to  replace  their  rails  at  the  end  of  a 
period  scientifically  calculated  to  be  the  limit  of  safety  for 
rails  subjected  to  the  jar  of  moving  trains. 

There  are  no  sleeping  cars  in  the  "Fatherland,"  and  all 
the  cars  are  smoking-cars  —  except  those  reserved  for  ladies. 


A  MOSAIC  OF  TRAVEL. 


105 


It  is  vain  to  think  that  you  can  escape  the  pipe  in  German 
trains,  unless  you  hire  a  whole  car.  At  the  stations,  first, 
second,  and  third-class  passengers  are  assigned  separate 
waiting-rooms,  and  are  penned  up  in  these  until  two  or 
three  minutes  before  the  train  starts,  when  the  doors  are 
unbolted,  and  a  rush  is  made  for  seats.  The  cars  open  at 
the  sides  and  are  divided  into  from  five  to  eight  compart- 
ments. The  head-conductor  and  the  sub-conductors  are  of 
course  uniformed.  The  conductor-in-chief,  after  collecting 
his  fares  by  walking  along  the  gang-plank  at  the  side, 
retires  to  a  little  projecting  watch-tower  perched  on  the 
end  of  the  coach.  No  drinking  water  is  provided;  if  there 
is  a  retiring-closet  it  is  placed  in  the  baggage-car,  and  the 
key  can  be  obtained  of  the  conductor.  As  there  are  no 
central  aisles  through  the  German  cars,  the  traveller  is 
obliged  to  remain  in  the  baggage-car  until  the  next  station 
is  reached,  when  the  key  is  returned  to  the  conductor!  The 
cars  on  some  lines  are  heated  by  a  preparation  of  wood, 
charcoal,  nitrate  of  potash,  and  starch, —  all  inclosed  in  an 
iron  box  placed  under  the  seats.  The  prepared  material 
comes  in  flat  cakes,  and  eight  of  these  cakes  will  warm  a 
compartment  for  sixteen  hours  at  a  cost  of  sixteen  cents. 
An  American  traveller  who  travelled  from  Cologne  to 
Mainz  by  the  "  lightning  express  "  says  that  the  train  moved 
at  the  tremendous  rate  of  twenty  miles  an  hour,  and  at  each 
of  the  fifteen  stopping  places  all  the  conductors  and  passen- 
gers alighted  and  walked  leisurely  to  the  nearest  restaurant 
for  beer,  so  that  he  calculated  that  it  takes  the  average 
German  five  hours  and  fifteen  beers  to  get  from  Cologne  to 
Mainz. 

But,  besides  safety,  there  are  other  meliorations.  Even 
fourth- class  cars  are  reserved  fur  Damen  (for  ladies),  and 


106    WONDERS  AHD  CURIOSITIES  OE  THE  RAILWAY. 


the  third-class  waiting  rooms  are  (according  *  to  German 
taste  at  least)  jovial  and  genial  places,  where  everybody  is 
smoking  or  drinking  beer,  and  at  a  jolly  buffet  a  flaxen- 
haired  Teuton  girl  supplies  you  with  two  eggs,  a  jug  of 
foaming  beer,  and  a  nice  sandwich,  and  gives  you  back 
change  out  of  threepence.  On  the  railroad  between 
Cologne  and  Berlin  they  have  introduced  the  neat  French 
custom  of  train-lunches.  The  train  between  the  two  cities 
stops  nowhere  longer  than  five  minutes;  so  inquiry  is  made 
before  the  train  starts  as  to  who  will  dine  at  Frankfort,  and 
when  the  train  arrives  at  that  city  "  waiters  deposit  trays  in 
the  cars  according  to  the  number  indicated  by  slips  stuck  by 
the  guard  on  the  windows  of  each  compartment.  These 
trays  are  electroplate  with  a  velveted  support  to  rest  them  on 
the  knees,  and  contain  a  whole  assortment  of  covered  elec- 
troplated dishes  fitted  into  holes  to  keep  them  firm  during 
the  oscillation  of  the  train.  Removing  the  lids,  the  travel- 
ler finds  a  soup  or  bouillon  in  one,  a  cutlet  with  peas  or 
beans  in  another,  a  fine  cut  of  a  joint  with  two  vegetables- 
in  another,  and  some  stewed  strawberries  in  a  fourth.  Add 
a  pint  bottle  of  white  wine,  and  such  conveniences  as  a 
napkin,  toothpick,  and  the  usual  condiments  and  bread,  and 
even  the  stingiest  traveller  cannot  begrudge  the  half-a- 
crown  which  is  asked  for  this  neat  little  entertainment." 
The  tray  is  handed  out  at  the  next  station,  and  the  traveller 
composes  himself  comfortably  to  his  book  or  his  nap. 

Steam  travel  in  Spain  is  a  pretty  rough  experience. 
The  luxuries  of  travel  are  not  to  be  sought  in  that  country. 
There  are  long  and  irritating  delays,  and  at  about  every 
stopping  place  you  are  amused  to  see  the  leisurely  fashion 
in  which  engineer,  fireman,  and  conductors  will  roll  up 
cigarettes  and  never  start  until  the  last  puff  has  been 


A  MOSAIC  OF  TKAVEL. 


107 


drawn.  But  on  every  Spanish  train  there  is  a  ivagon  reser- 
vado  para  Senoras;  and  at  the  stations  the  refreshing  cry, 
Quien  quiere  agna?  mingles  with  the  voice  of  the  vendor  of 
cool,  delicious  grapes,  oranges,  and  lemons. 

The  English  and  the  Americans  find  a  good  deal  of  fault 
with  French  travelling  accommodations,*  but  there  is  much 
that  is  agreeable  in  the  management  of  their  railroads. 
The  officials  may  ventilate  the  cars  badly,  furnish  some  poor 
ones,  rob  your  luggage  occasionally,  keep  back  change,  and 
furnish  wretched  sleeping  cars;  but  then  many  of  the  cars 
are  excellent,  and  are  furnished  with  carpets  and  foot- warm- 
ers, the  officials  are  courteous,  and,  above  all,  you  are  pro- 
vided with  elegant  and  digestible  lunches.  Dickens,  it  will 
be  remembered,  in  his  "Mugby  Junction,"  hits  off  with 
delicious  satire  the  difference  between  the  French  and  Eng- 
lish restaurants  of  his  dav.  The  English  ones  have  im- 
proved  since  he  wrote,  and  the  French  ones  have  not  dete- 
riorated. The  "Missis"  of  the  u  refreshment "  room  at 
Mugby  thus  imparts  to  her  employes  the  results  of  her  tour 
of  observation  in  France: 

"  '  Shall  I  be  believed  when  I  tell  you  that  no  sooner  had 
I  landed  on  that  treacherous  shore  than  I  was  ushered  into 
a  Eefreshment  Room  where  there  were,  I  do  not  exaggerate, 
actually  eatable  things  to  eat?' 

"  A  groan  burst  from  the  ladies. 

# 

*  An  Englishman,  writing  to  the  London  "Times,11  growls  about  a  French- 
man with  whom  he  travelled,  who  smoked  a  nasty  pipe,  drank  sour  wine,  and 
spat  on  the  carpet  of  the  car.  But  exceptions  do  not  make  the  rule,  and 
nobody  doubts  the  superficial  politeness,  at  least,  of  the  Frenchman.  English- 
men also  complain  of  the  red  tape  of  the  baggage  room.  They  weigh  your  bag- 
gage, enter  it  in  a  book,  and  write  the  weight,  destination,  number,  and  charge 
for  transportation  on  a  slip  of  paper,  which  is  handed  to  you.  When  you  arrive 
at  your  destination  you  cannot  get  your  luggage  until  trunks,  bags,  and  boxes 
are  all  set  out  in  order  on  long  counters. 


108   WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 


" 4  Where  there  were  not  only  eatable  things  to  eat,  but 
also  drinkable  things  to  drink.' 

"A  murmur,  swelling  almost  into  a  scream,  ariz.  Miss 
Piff,  trembling  with  indignation,  called  out:  'Name!' 

4  4  4  1  will  name,'  said  Our  Missis.  4  There  was  roast 
fowls,  hot  and  cold;  there  was  smoking  roast  veal  sur- 
rounded with  brown  potatoes;  there  was  hot  soup  with 
(again  I  ask,  Shall  I  be  credited?)  nothing  bitter  in  it,  and 
no  flour  to  choke  off  the  consumer;  there  was  a  variety  of 
cold  dishes  set  off  with  jelly;  there  was  salad;  there  was  — 
mark  me! — fresh  pastry,  and  that  of  a  light  construction; 
there  was  a  luscious  show  of  fruit.  There  was  bottles  and 
decanters  of  sound  small  wine,  of  every  size  and  adapted  to 
every  pocket;  the  same  odious  statement  will  apply  to 
brandy;  and  these  were  set  out  upon  the  counter  so  that  all 
could  help  themselves.'    *    *  * 

"  4 1  need  not  explain  to  this  assembly  the  ingredients 
and  formation  of  the  British  Refreshment  sangwich.'  (Uni- 
versal laughter.) 

4  4  4  Well,  take  a  fresh,  crisp,  long,  crusty  penny  loaf  made 
of  the  whitest  and  best  flour.  Cut  it  longwise  through 
the  middle.  Insert  a  fair  and  nicely  fitting  slice  of  ham. 
Tie  a  smart  piece  of  ribbon  around  the  middle  of  the  whole 
to  bind  it  together.  Add  at  one  end  a  neat  wrapper  of 
clean  white  paper  by  which  to  hold  it,  and  the  universal 
French  Refreshment  sangwich  busts  on  your  disgusted  vis- 
ion.' *    ( A  cry  of  4  shame ! '  from  all.)" 

*Of  late  the  lunch-basket  system  (already  referred  to)  has  come  into  vogue 
in  France.  The  following  announcement  is  posted  in  the  stations  of  one  French 
line: 

"MM.  the  travellers  who  wish  to  breakfast  or  dine  are  advertised  that 
they  will  find  at  the  buffet  hot  meals  in  baskets  for  2  fr.,  50c. 

"  These  meals  are  composed  of  three  dishes,  one-half  a  bottle  of  wine 


A  MOSAIC  OF  TRAYEL. 


109 


Last  of  all,  let  us  cross  the  Channel,  and  consider  some 
of  the  more  wonderful  features  of  English  railways. 

Many  of  the  English  railroads  follow  the  lines  of  the  old 
Eoman  roads,  such  as  Watling  street  (from  Chester  to 
Dover),  Foss  way,  Ermine  street,  and  the  Antonine  way. 
It  is  generally  thought  by  Americans  that  English  cars  at- 
tain a  greater  speed  than  do  those  in  this  country.  But  of 
late  (as  we  shall  see  when  we  come  to  speak  of  speed)  it  has 
been  shown  that  many  of  our  eastern  trains  make  as  good 
time  as  the  fastest  English  ones.  We  are  naturally  attached 
to  our  own  railway  system.  But  so  are  the  English  to 
theirs,  although  the  more  cosmopolitan  and  better-travelled 
Englishmen  acknowledge  the  superiority  of  our  cars,  espe- 
cially as  making  utterly  impossible  the  outrages  and  murders 
so  frequent  in  the  closed  and  isolated  compartments  of  their 
coaches.  In  looking  over  the  index  of  the  London  "  Times," 
the  writer  of  these  pages  was  astonished  to  find  that  during 
a  period  of  twenty  years  there  was  not  a  single  year  in 
which  many  outrages,  attempted  murders,  and  attacks  by 
madmen  were  not  reported  to  have  occurred  in  the  closed 
compartments  of  English  cars.  When  pickpockets  travel 
by  rail  and  are  known  by  the  policemen,  they  are  placed  in 
separate  compartments  with  locked  doors.  An  amusing  in- 
cident is  related  of  the  capture  of  a  thief  in  an  English  car. 
A  lady  and  a  gentleman  were  travelling  alone.  Presently 
the  man  asked  the  lady  if  she  would  oblige  him  by  rising 
and  turning  her  face  to  the  window,  as  he  wished  to  make 
some  changes  in  his  wearing  apparel.  She  complied.  After 
a  moment  he  said,  "  Now,  madam,  you  may  resume  your 

bread,  and  dessert.  MM.  the  travellers  have  thirty  minutes  to  take  their 
meals  in  their  cars." 

In  other  words,  you  procure  a  lunch-basket  at  one  station,  and  return  it 

empty  at  the  next. 


110    WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OE  THE  RAILWAY. 

seat."  But  what  was  his  astonishment  at  finding  that  the 
supposed  lady  had  also  made  some  little  changes  in  her 
attire,  and  was,  in  short,  transformed  into  a  hian,  as  he  him- 
self in  turn  was  changed  into  a  lady.  A  laugh  ensued,  and 
the  man  who  had  first  spoken  said  to  his  companion,  "  It 
appears  that  we  are  both  anxious  to  avoid  recognition. 
What  have  you  done?    I  have  robbed  a  bank." 

"  And  I,"  said  the  whilom  lady,  as  he  dexterously  fast- 
ened a  pair  of  handcuffs  on  the  wrists  of  his  interlocutor, 
"  I  am  Detective  J.  of  Scotland  Yard,  and  in  female  apparel 
have  shadowed  you  for  two  days.  Now,"  drawing  a  re- 
volver, "keep  still." 

This  incident  is  told  here  to  suggest  the  complete  help- 
lessness of  ordinary  English  passengers  in  case  they  are 
shut  in  with  dangerous  characters  in  the  small  compart- 
ments of  their  cars.  But  notwithstanding  that  this  danger 
is  as  plain  as  the  nose  on  a  man's  face,  the  stubborn  insular- 
ism  of  the  British,  and  their  love  of  personal  exclusiveness 
prevent  them  from  adopting  to  any  great  extent  our  demo- 
cratic aisled  cars.  When  American  cars  were  first  intro- 
duced on  the  Midland  road,  people  came  and  looked  at  them 
and  then  went  away  and  took  passage  in  a  rival  line.  Yet 
our  Pullman  and  Wagner  coaches  are  universally  liked  in 
England.  Whether  our  ordinary  cars  will  ever  supplant 
theirs  is  doubtful.  There  are  good  things  to  be  said  of  the 
English  car.  The  railway  service  of  Great  Britain  is  the 
finest  in  the  world.  The  cushions  of  the  first-class  coaches 
are  rich  and  sober  in  tone,  and  extremely  comfortable.  Every- 
thing is  done  for  the  traveller's  comfort  by  polite  officials, 
the  tickets  of  passengers  are  examined  just  before  the  train 
starts,  your  luggage  goes  in  the  same  van  with  yourself,  the 
cars  are  started  gently  and  gradually,  the  best  roads  are 


A  MOSAIC  OE  TRAVEL. 


Ill 


smooth  as  glass,  the  speed  high,  and  the  tracks  carefully 
guarded  by  watchmen,  by  overhead  bridges,  and  by  fines 
levelled  against  trespassers. 

One  of  the  wonders  of  the  world  is  the  underground 
railway  of  London  —  or  rather  railways,  for  London  is  now 
belted  by  a  nearly  complete  double  circle  of  these  subterra- 
nean ways.  The  only  similar  works  in  the  world  are 
the  underground  railway  of  Constantinople  (which  is 
about  half  a  mile  long,  and  cost  one  million  dollars), 
and  the  Fourth  avenue  tunnel  in  New  York  city,  extend- 
ing from  Forty-second  street  to  Harlem  River,  a  distance 
of  four  miles. 

The  inner  circle  of  the  London  roads  is  twelve  miles 
long,  and  consists  partly  of  tunnels  and  partly  of  cuttings 
(with  high  walls)  opening  to  the  sky.  The  Metropolitan  was 
the  first,  and  was  built  for  the  purpose  of  affording  the 
Great  Western  railway  a  city  station  at  Farringdon  street. 
It  was  afterward  extended  under  the  most  crowded  portion 
of  the  mighty  city.  Connected  with  it  is  the  Metropolitan 
District  railway,  filling  out  the  western  portion  of  the 
circle  or  ellipse,  and  called  the  Daylight  Route,  owing  to 
the  number  of  open  cuttings.  These  great  arteries  of  intra- 
mural traffic  run  either  on  a  level  with  or  underneath  the 
gas-pipes,  water-mains,  and  sewers,  and  it  may  well  be  im- 
agined that  all  the  skill  of  a  surgeon  was  needed  to  avoid 
severing  some  part  of  the  vast  network  formed  by  these 
conduits.  Thrice  was  it  necessary,  during  the  construction, 
to  tunnel  under  tHe  great "  Fleet  Ditch  "  sewer,  and  yet  the 
passage  of  the  sewage  could  not  be  interrupted  for  a  single 
moment.  In  case  buildings  were  to  be  tunnelled  under,  it 
was  necessary  to  purchase  them,  and  they  were  then  gener- 
ally demolished.     The  underground  roads  cost  from  two 


112    WONDEKS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  KAILWAY. 

and  a  half  to  four  million  dollars  per  mile,  and  the  Metro- 
politan now  pays  four  per  cent  on  its  capital.    The  roads 
act  the  part  of  a  go-between,  or  passenger  exchange,  with 
respect  to  the  other  great  trunk  lines  centring  in  London, 
since  wherever  the  underground  lines  intersect  them,  quad- 
ruple subterranean  tracks  are  laid,  that  the  surface  roads  may 
have  room  to  run  in  their  trains  and  transfer  their  passen- 
gers. In  this  way  a  passenger  arriving  from  the  north  can 
now  at  once  continue  his  journey  southward,  if  he  so  chooses, 
without  carriage  transfer  through  the  crowded  streets  of 
the  city.    The  lines  are  worked  on  the  block  system  of  sig- 
nals, a  very  necessary  precaution  where  trains  follow  each 
other  from  daylight  to  midnight,  at  intervals  of  one  and 
two  minutes.    Two  or  three  of  the  small  hours  of  the  night 
are  reserved  for  repairs,  and  during  this  time  no  trains  are 
run.    In  1880  the  Metropolitan  road  carried  over  sixty- 
three  million  passengers.    The  engines  burn  either  coke  or 
a  smokeless  coal  from  South  Wales  (called  Bwlffa  coal),  and 
the  exhaust  steam  is  condensed  in  the  water  tank.  But 
notwithstanding  all  precautions  there  is  a  sulphurous,  disa- 
greeable smell  in  the  tunnels,  and  a  dingy  atmosphere  gives 
its  tone  to  everything.    The  trains  are  almost  noiseless, 
and  glide  in  weirdly  out  of  the  darkness  to  the  light  of  the 
sunken  station,  stop  for  fifteen  or  twenty  seconds,  and  then 
rapidly  move  on  again.    At  the  stations  time  is  saved  by 
having  the  trains  so  made  up  that  each  different  class  of 
cars  may   always  stop  directly  over  against  a  certain 
portion  of  the  platform,  which  is  labelled  ''first/'  "sec- 
ond," or  "third"  class,  as  the  case  may  be.    This  enables 
people  to  wait  in  the  place  where  they  can  step  directly 
aboard,  on  the  arrival  of  the  train.    The  cars  are  lighted 
by  gas. 


A  MOSAIC  OF  TEAYEL. 


113 


The  year  1876  saw  the  completion  of  still  another  sub- 
terranean railroad  in  London,  that  of  the  East  London  com- 
pany, extending  south-easterly  from  the  Liverpool  street 
Station  of  the  Great  Eastern  railroad,  passing  under  the 
warehouses  and  water- basin  of  the  London  docks,  thence 
through  the  famous  Thames  tunnel  to  the  New  Cross 
station  of  the  South  Eastern  railway.  This  gigantic  sub- 
terranean and  subfluvial  structure  cost  sixteen  million 
dollars,  and  is  six  miles  in  length. 
8 


CHAPTER  VII. 


A  HANDFUL  OF  CURIOSITIES. 

r  1 1HE  inventive  genius  of  mechanicians  has  exercised  itself 
in  the  excogitation  of  a  good  many  fantastic  and  dar- 
ing plans  for  railroads  and  locomotives.  There  have  been 
not  only  railroads  under  the  ground  and  in  the  air,  but 
railroads  in  the  clouds,  railroads  among  the  tree-tops,  and 
railroads  on  the  ice,  and  the  models  of  even  a  submarine 
railway  have  been  constructed  and  exhibited.  And  there 
have  been  flying  locomotives,  locomotives  with  sails,  locomo- 
tives on  sled-runners,  and  bicycle  locomotives. 


(By  permission  of  the  "  Scientific  American.") 


A  LOCOMOTIVE  ON  SLED  RUNNERS. 

Some  years  ago  a  Locomotive  on  Sled-Runners  was  con- 
structed by  the  Messrs.  Neilson  of  Glasgow,  Scotland. 
It  was  employed  in  Russia  for  drawing  passengers  and 
freight  over  the  ice  between  Saint  Petersburg  and  Cron- 
stadt.  The  two  driving-wheels  in  the  rear  are  studded 
with  sharp  spikes.  The  front  part  of  the  engine  rests  on  a 
sledge,  which  is  swivelled,  and  is  turned  to  the  right  or  left 
by  the  wheels  working  in  connection  with  an  endless  screw 

114 


A  HANDFUL  OF  CURIOSITIES. 


115 


and  a  segment  rack.  The  locomotive  is  said  to  have  run 
eighteen  miles  an  hour  over  the  ice.  From  the  Russian 
ice  locomotive,  the  transition  is  natural  to  Railroads  on  the 
Ice.  On  February  12th,  1879,  when  the  mercury  stood 
twenty  degrees  below  zero,  the  first  train  of  the  Northern 
Pacific  railroad  to  cross  the  Missouri  Eiver  passed  over  on 
ice  three  feet  deep.  The  track  was  laid  on  twelve-foot  ties, 
and  the  cars  carried  over  a  number  of  visitors  and  a  quan- 
tity of  railroad  iron.  In  January  of  1880,  a  similar  road 
was  built  across  the  frozen  Saint  Lawrence  at  Hochelaga. 
A  rough  bed  was  first  levelled  in  the  ice;  then  cross  beams 
were  fitted  in,  and  upon  these  were  placed  longitudinal 
beams,  which  were  themselves  crossed  by  the  ties  that  held 
the  rails ;  water  was  then  pumped  over  the  whole  structure 
to  freeze  it  down. 

The  idea  of  grading  for  a  railroad  through  a  forest  with 
a  cross-cut  saw,  and  laying  the  ties  on  the  stumps  is  cer- 
tainly a  novel  idea.  But  it  has  actually  been  done,  and 
California  can  now  enumerate  among  her  unique  curiosi- 
ties a  Railroad  in  the  Tree-Tops.  In  Sonoma  county, 
between  Chipper  Mills  and  Stuart's  Point,  where  the  rail- 
road crosses  a  deep  wooded  ravine,  the  trees  are  sawed  off 
level,  and  the  ties  fastened  upon  the  stumps.  Of  these  trees, 
two  are  huge  redwoods  which  stand  side  by  side,  and  are 
sawed  off  seventy-five  feet  from  the  ground.  Upon  this 
firm  support  cars  loaded  with  heavy  saw-logs  pass  over  with 
complete  securrly.  The  reader  will  remember  the  curious 
suggestion  made  by  Colonel  John  Stevens,  to  construct  the 
Erie  railroad  on  piles  sunk  in  the  ground.  In  1839  a  sec- 
tion of  the  projected  road  of  the  Ohio  Railroad  Company 
was  laid  on  piles  between  the  towns  of  Fremont  and  Mau- 
mee.    The  piles  were  from  seven  to  twenty-eight  feet  long, 


116    WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OE  THE  RAILWAY. 

and  were  driven  ten  feet  apart  in  four  rows,  the  intention 
being  to  have  a  double  track.  Upon  the  piles  were  laid 
longitudinal  chestnut  sills ;  upon  these  the  cross-ties,  which 
were  surmounted  by  stringers  covered  with  the  usual  strap- 
iron  of  those  days.  Fifty-two  miles  of  this  curious  railroad 
were  built  at  a  cost  of  sixteen  thousand  dollars  per  mile. 
But  the  company  failing  in  the  hard  times  that  followed 
the  speculative  mania  of  1836,  the  road  was  never  com- 
pleted, nor  was  a  single  train  ever  run  over  its  track.* 

There  are  several  Wooden  Railways  in  the  United  States 
and  Canada.  One  of  these,  in  the  province  of  Quebec,  is 
thirty  miles  long.  The  rails  are  of  maple,  four  by  seven 
inches,  and  trains  run  over  them  with  remarkable  smooth- 
ness at  the  rate  of  twenty-five  miles  an  hour.  The  road  is 
used  for  the  transportation  of  timber,  and  the  rolling-stock 
consists  of  one  locomotive  and  thirty-five  cars.  Another 
wooden-track  railway,  fifteen  and  a  half  miles  long,  has 
been  constructed  by  Messrs.  Land  and  Pritchett  on  the 
gradings  of  the  abandoned  South  Carolina  Central  railroad. 
It  cost  the  firm  twelve  hundred  dollars  a  mile,  and  was 
built  by  them  to  carry  the  products  of  their  turpentine  dis- 
tilleries to  a  market. 

•Very  curious  are  what  may  be  called  the  Bicycle  Rail- 
ways, built  with  a  single  rail.  One  called  the  "  Steam  Car- 
avan" was  begun  in  Syria,  between  Aleppo  and  Alexand- 
retta.  The  rail  was  raised  on  a  wall  of  masonry  twenty- 
eight  inches  high,  and  seventeen  and  one-half  inches  broad; 
on  the  rail  travelled  the  wheels  of  the  locomotive.  The 
engine  and  the  last  car  in  the  train  were  also  to  be  supported, 
or  braced,  by  obliquely  placed  leather-covered  wheels  travel- 


*  For  a  description  of  Elevated  City  Railroads  see  Chapter  X,  near  end,  and 
for  Colonel  Stevens's  idea  see  Chapter  II,  page  33, 


A  HANDFUL  OF  CURIOSITIES. 


118    WONDERS  AID  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 


ling  along  the  sides  of  the  wall;  these  wheels  also  to  serve 
as  brakes,  by  the  aid  of  properly  applied  levers.  The 
"  Steam  Caravan "  road  seems  never  to  have  been  com- 
pleted. A  single-rail,  or  bicycle,  railroad  has  also  been 
constructed  in  this  country.  It  is  the  invention  of  General 
Le  Roy  Stone;  was  in  operation  at  Phcenixville,  Penn- 
sylvania, in  1876,  and  was  exhibited  in  Philadelphia  in  the 
same  year.  A  two- wheeled  locomotive  has  been  constructed 
in  Gloucester,  New  Jersey.  The  weight  is  four  tons,  and  the 
wheels  have  very  deep  flanges.  This  bicycle  locomotive  was 
made  for  an  elevated  city  railroad  in  Atlanta,  Georgia. 
Similar  to  this  locomotive  are  the  Railway  Velocipedes,  so 
many  of  which  are  used  on  western  roads.  They  have  a 
wheel  on  each  track,  are  light  in  construction,  and  are  pro- 
pelled by  the  feet  and  hands  of  the  rider  at  the  rate  of 
twenty  miles  an  hour. 

There  are  several  Toy  Raihvays,  or  model  railways  for 
experiments,  in  this  country  and  Europe.  Mr.  Robert  Cole- 
man, a  young  millionaire  living  at  Lebanon,  Pennsylvania, 
has  constructed,  for  purposes  of  experiment,  a  miniature 
railroad  one  hundred  and  fifty  feet  in  length.  It  is  in 
a  building  erected  especially  for  the  purpose.  The  roadway 
is  circular  with  a  double  line  of  steel  tracks  extending 
around  the  room.  The  locomotives  are  about  four  feet  in 
length,  including  the  tenders.  They  are  of  English  make 
and  are  perfect  little  beauties,  the  cabs  being  of  solid  wal- 
nut, and  the  boilers  proper  and  the  fire-boxes  of  wrought 
steel.  The  tenders  are  made  of  copper,  and  their  supply  of 
water  is  taken  up  by  little  scoops,  from  vats  in  the  roadway, 
while  the  locomotives  are  in  motion.  There  are  patent 
safety  switches,  electric  crossing  signals,  safety  frogs,  etc. 
The  locomotives  accurately  repeat  in   miniature  every 


A  HANDFUL  OF  CURIOSITIES. 


119 


smallest  feature  of  large  engines.  Many  hours  are  passed 
in  this  building  by  the  wealthy  proprietor  in  experiments 
as  to  high  and  low  speed,  friction,  safety-devices,  etc.,  while 
his  three  little  locomotives  go  puffing  and  panting  around 
the  tracks.  Mr.  Percival  Haywood,  a  gentleman  of  inde- 
pendent fortune,  living  near  Derby,  England,  has  also  built 
a  miniature  railroad,  with  workshops,  etc.  The  track  is  a 
n^ile  long,  and  he  has  a  number  of  tiny  locomotives  and 
cars.  His  experiments  have  respect  to  improvements  in 
army  field-railways  and  military  railway  plant. 

A  Submarine  Railway  is  probably  about  the  last  thing 
that  most  people  would  think  of.  Yet  a  Frenchman,  Doctor 
La  Combe,  has  had  the  audacity  to  work  out  the  details  of 
such  a  device,  and  his  models  were  exhibited  at  the  Palais 
de  l'lndustrie  in  Paris,  in  1876.  His  plan  provides  for  a 
submarine  railway  between  Dover  and  Calais.  On  a  road- 
bed of  beton,  or  concrete,  three  galvanized  iron  rails  are  to 
be  placed;  two  for  the  track,  and  one  in  the  centre.  To 
the  central  rail  the  car  is  to  be  attached  by  rollers  in  order 
to  prevent  its  being  derailed  by  the  waves.  The  boat-car  is 
to  be  air  tight,  and  driven  by  a  propeller-screw,  worked  by 
compressed  air.  The  car  is  to  be  supplied  with  fresh  air  by 
a  tube  running  up  to  the  surface  of  the  water  where  it  is 
affixed  to  a  buoy.  A  series  of  buoys  on  the  surface  would 
mark  out  the  track  of  the  car,  and  in  case  of  any  accident  it 
(the  car)  would  float  on  the  surface,  when  cut  loose  below. 
The  inventor  is  very  confident  of  the  success  of  his  plan,  if 
it  were  only  tried. 

The  Marine  Railroad  of  Captain  James  B.  Eads  (builder 
of  the  Mississippi  River  jetties  and  the  great  St.  Louis 
bridge)  is  to  be  112  miles  in  length,  uniting  the  Gulf  of 
Campeachy  with  the  Gulf  of  Tehuantepec.    The  route  was 


120    WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 

surveyed  in  1881,  and  enough  work  has  been  done  to  secure 
the  generous  concessions  of  aid  afforded  by  the  Mexican 
government.  Captain  Eads's  ship  railway  is  designed  to 
transport  ocean  vessels  across  the  American  isthmus,  with- 
out unloading.  He  says  that  his  studies  have  convinced 
him  that  the  largest  loaded  ships  may  be  carried  with  per- 
fect safety  at  ten  or  twelve  miles  per  hour,  on  steel  rails 
weighing  but  seventy  pounds  per  yard,  the  kind  used  by 
first-class  railroads,  and  on  wheels  which  shall  not  impose 
as  great  a  pressure  upon  the  rails  as  that  of  the  driving- 
wheels  of  a  first-class  locomotive  when  at  rest;  and  that  no 
grades  need  be  encountered  from  ocean  to  ocean  greater 
than'  one  per  cent,  or  fifty  feet  to  the  mile.  The  ships  are 
to  be  kept  upright  by  the  same  means  that  are  employed  in 
dry  docks.  The  propelling  power  is  to  be  furnished  by  four 
locomotives,  two  on  each  side  of  the  ship,  which  is  itself  to 
rest  on  a  broad,  wheeled  cradle,  or  low  car,  running  on 
many  rails.  At  either  ocean  ships  are  to  be  elevated  to 
the  cradle  by  a  vertical  hydraulic  lift,  instead  of  by  the  in- 
cline originally  contemplated. 

The  idea  of  Atmospheric  Railways  originated  with  old 
philosopher  Papin,  of  Blois,  in  France.  His  idea  was  that 
of  conveying  carriages  along  a  large  tube  by  means  of 
a  vacuum  and  atmospheric  pressure.  The  plan  was  revived 
in  1810  by  the  Englishman  Medhurst,  and  later  was  in 
practical  operation  at  the  Crystal  Palace,  Sydenham.  The 
tube  in  this  latter  case  was  a  quarter  of  a  mile  long,  and 
the  car  within  it  was  used  for  the  conveyance  of  passengers 
solely.  The  tunnel,  or  tube,  was  of  brick  and  was  nine  feet 
high  and  eight  feet  wide.  The  piston  that  propelled  the  car 
was  rendered  almost  air-tight  by  means  of  a  fringe  of 
bristles  extending  nearly  to  the  surrounding  brickwork  of 


A  HANDFUL  OF  CURIOSITIES. 


121 


the  tunnel,  and  to  its  floor.  A  fan  worked  by  a  steam-engine 
both  exhausted  and  compressed  the  air.  The  motion  of  the 
car  was  pleasant,  and  the  ventilation  ample.  The  best 
pneumatic  railway  was  patented  in  London  in  1834  by  an 
American  named  Pinkus.  He  made  his  air-tube  only  forty 
inches  in  diameter,  placing  it  under  the  car,  to  which  it  was 
attached  by  a  vertical  arm  working  in  a  continuous  slot. 
The  tube  extended  the  whole  length  of  the  railway,  was 
firmly  fixed  to  the  roadbed,  and  only  the  vertical  arm  moved 
forward,  pushing  the  car  with  it.  The  vertical  arm  or  lever 
was  operated  by  a  pneumatic  piston  in  the  tube.  In  1846 
five  miles  of  road  on  this  plan  were  in  operation  between 
London  and  Croydon.  The  device  has  not  proved  of  practi- 
cal value. 

A  Flying  Locomotive  was  constructed  by  Mr.  Moy  and 
successfully  operated  at  the  Aeronautical  Exhibition  in  Eng- 
land in  1868.  The  engine  weighed  thirteen  pounds,  and  in 
connection  with  aero-plane  wheels  was  made  to  lift  itself, 
and  forty  pounds  in  addition,  to  a  height  of  six  inches,  in 
continuous  flight  around  the  room. 

The  device  of  a  chariot  or  Car  ivith  Sails,  spoken  of  by 
Bishop  Wilkins  in  his  "  Mathematical  Magick,"  and  at  vari- 
ous times  made  use  of  on  the  level  roads  of  Holland,  Spain, 
and  China,  has  been  twice  or  thrice  revived  in  America. 
One  instance  has  already  been  mentioned.'*  One  of  the 
most  successful  of  these  sailing  cars  has  been  devised  by  Mr. 
C.  J.  Bascom,  of  the  Kansas  Pacific  railroad.  It  has  been 
used  for  years  as  a  hand- car  on  that  road.  The  mast  is 
eleven  feet  high,  and  the  triangular  sail  has  two  booms. 
On  the  plains  a  speed  of  forty  miles  an  hour  has  been 
attained  by  the  car,  with  the  wind  right  abeam  (on  the 

*  See  page  39. 


122    WONDERS  AID  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 


side),  the  sail  close  hauled,  and  the  road  full  of  disadvan- 
tageous curves. 

The  sailing-car  tried  on  the  South  Carolina  railroad  in 
1830  was  very  successful.  A  trial- trip  was  made  in  it  by 
fifteen  gentlemen.  The  experiment  afforded  high  sport, 
according  to  a  local  paper.  The  car  flew  over  the  track  at 
the  rate  of  fourteen  miles  the  hour,  with  the  wind  blowing 
very  fresh  right  abeam,  and  driving  the  car  in  either 
direction  with  equal  speed.  When  going  at  twelve  miles  an 
hour,  the  mast  went  by  the  board,  carrying  with  it  the  sail 
and  rigging,  together  with  several  of  the  crew.  The  dam- 
age was  repaired,  and  the  wind  presently  changing,  it  was 
discovered  that  the  car  could  sail  within  four  points  of  the 
wind. 

Two  other  railroad  curiosities  remain  to  be  described  in 
this  chapter. 

Captain  C.  W.  Williams,  U.  S.  A.,  has  recently  invented 
a  Telegraphic  Car,  or  moving  telegraph  office.  It  was  suc- 
cessfully tried  on  the  Atlanta  and  Charlotte  Air  Line  in 
1882.  A  line  of  electric  wire  laid  alongside  the  track  com- 
municates with  certain  key-blocks  and  metallic  rollers  fixed 
to  the  ties.  On  the  bottom  of  the  telegraphic  car  are  two 
long  strips  of  metal  (one  on  each  side),  which,  when  the  car 
is  in  motion,  pass  over  the  successive  rollers  on  .the  cross- 
ties,  depressing  them  as  they  pass.  The  rollers  are  at  such 
distances  apart  that  the  strips  on  the  car  always  touch  one 
or  another  of  them.  When  the  rollers  are  depressed  by  one 
of  the  car-strips,  electric  communication  is  established  with 
the  wire  along  the  track,  and  the  deflected  current  passes  up 
into  the  car  and  down  on  the  other  side  through  the  second 
car-strip  to  the  main  line  again.  By  this  invention  not 
only  may  trains  communicate  with  each  other  at  anv  time, 


124    WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 

but  the  train-despatcher  may  be  in  constant  and  close  con- 
nection with  every  train  on  his  line. 

Prof.  P.  H.  Dudley,  a  citizen  of  the  United  States,  after 
working  for  eight  years  at  the  invention  of  a  piece  of 
mechanism  to  be  used  for  the  inspection  of  tracks,  finally 
perfected  a  machine  of  the  following  description:  A  strip  of 
plain  paper,  about  twenty  inches  wide,  is  fed  from  a  roll 
into  a  small  machine,  where  it  passes  under  a  complex  set  of 
overflowing  pens  which  are  connected  by  rods  and  springs 
with  the  car  wheels  below.  For  every  fifty  feet  of  track 
passed  over  by  the  Dynograph  Car,  the  paper  moves  one 
inch.  The  automatic  machinery  makes  a  complete  register 
on  the  paper  strips  of  the  state  of  the  track:  it  shows  the 
condition  of  each  joint,  frog,  and  grade-crossing,  and  reveals 
at  a  glance  any  inequalities  or  undulations  in  the  rails. 
After  a  railroad  has  been  examined,  the  operator  shows  his 
chart  to  the  road-superintendent,  who  then  sees  instantly 
just  where  repairs  are  needed.  There  is  also  connected  with 
the  machine  an  electrical  attachment  for  indicating  mile- 
posts  and  stations;  this  is  worked  by  hand.  There  are  only 
two  of  these  machines  in  existence.  One  is  operated  by  the 
inventor,  and  was  exhibited  at  the  Eailway  Exposition  in 
1883,  and  the  other  has  been  sent  to  Australia.  The  machine 
used  by  the  inventor  is  placed  in  a  special  car  containing, 
besides  the  work-room,  a  library,  parlor,  dining-room, 
kitchen,  bed-room,  and  store-room;  and  in  this  car  the 
inventor  travels  over  the  country  on  his  tours  of  inspection. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 


MOUNTAIN  RAILWAYS. 

nnHE  locomotive  has  proved  to  be  a  good  climber,  and  the 
defiant  whinny  with  which  he  announces  his  arrival 
has  startled  the  eagles  and  the  wild  goats  up  among  the 
crags  and  clouds  of  many  a  mountain  pass  in  the  Alps,  the 
Andes,  and  the  Rocky  Mountains  of  America.  There  are 
five  sorts  of  mountain  railways, —  gravity  roads,  rack-rail 
roads,  counterpoise  roads,  roads  with  stationary  engines,  and 
the  ordinary  traction  roads. 

Pennsylvania  has  several  gravity  railroads  —  all  used  for 
the  transfer  of  coal  to  shipping  points.  That  of  the  Dela- 
ware and  Hudson  Canal  Company*  lies  among  the  pictur- 
esque Moosic  Mountains,  two  thousand  feet  above  the  sea.  It 
was  built  in  1828,  was  the  third  practical  railroad  in  the 
country,  and  constituted  a  part  of  the  gigantic  scheme  of 
the  Philadelphia  Quakers,  William  and  Maurice  Wurts,  to 
connect  the  coal  mines  discovered  by  them  in  the  valley  of  the 
Lackawanna  with  tide- water  on  the  Hudson  River,  via  their 
canal.  The  railroad  filled  up  a  gap  seventeen  miles  long 
separating  the  mines  from  the  mountain  terminus  of  the 
canal.  The  hilly  nature  of  .  the  region  determined  the 
character  of  the  railway.  It  consists  of  eight  inclined  planes 
from  one  mile  to  four  miles  in  length.  From  the  summit 
to  Carbondale  there  is  an  uninterrupted  descent,  down  which 

*  For  historical  matter  relating  to  this  road  and  to  the  Mauch  Chunk  road, 
see  Chapter  II,  "The  First  American  Kailroads,"  pages  35-38. 

125 


126    WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OP  THE  RAILWAY. 

the  cars  rush  at  a  speed  of  sixty  miles  an  hour.  An  enor- 
mous fan  at  the  summit  engine-house  regulates  the  rate  of 
descent  by  atmospheric  pressure.  In  1877  the  first  passenger 
cars  were  put  on  the  road,  to  the  great  enjoyment  of  visitors 
and  citizens.  The  ride  is  one  of  the  most  peculiar  and  ex- 
hilarating in  the  world.  You  are  reminded  of  the  magical 
car  of  the  subterranean  Egyptian  temple,  described  by  Tom 
Moore  in  his  "  Epicurean."  Here  you  are,  travelling  for 
miles,  up  hill  and  down,  through  beautiful  scenery,  and  no 
visible  agency  to  propel  you.  East  and  south  the  landscape 
stretches  away  for  sixty  miles;  at  Shepherd's  Crook  you 
whirl  around  the  summit  of  a  gorge  four  hundred  feet  in 
depth,  with  a  series  of  cataracts  leaping  down  three  hundred 
feet  among  the  hemlocks,  and  the  valley  of  the  Lackawanna, 
spotted  with  towns  and  farms,  stretching  out  far  and  wide 
in  the  distance.  There  is  no  dust,  no  smoke,  no  cinders,  no 
whistle,  no  insolent  official;  you  only  feel  that  some  gigan- 
tic piece  of  clock-work  is  drawing  you  smoothly  onward,  and 
you  lie  back  in  your  seat  in  tranquil  enjoyment,  and  yield 
yourself  to  the  novel  illusion  of  magical  power. 

Another  gravity  road  in  Pennsylvania  is  that  of  the 
Pennsylvania  Coal  Company,  near  Scranton.  It  extends  for 
thirty-three  miles  through  magnificent  mountain  scenery. 

A  curious  variety  of  coal  railroad  was  the  Switchback 
road  —  a  portion  of  the  Mauch  Chunk  gravity  road  (de- 
scribed in  Chapter  II).  It  was  constructed  on  the  occasion 
of  the  discovery  of  the  Panther  Creek  mines.  The  cars, 
running  smoothly  on  a  down  grade,  were  made  to  run  up- 
hill by  the  momentum  they  had  acquired,  until  they  were 
stopped  by  the  steepness  of  the  grade;  then  the  attraction 
of  gravitation  would  pull  them  back  again  down-hill.  But 
when  they  arrived  at  the  bottom,  or  central  part  between 


MOUNTAIN  BAILWAYS. 


127 


the  two  hills,  a  switch,  working  by  a  spring,  threw  them  on 
another  track,  and  they  continued  down  the  mountain  in 
a  different  direction.  The  next  switch  would  send*them  in 
the  original  direction,  and  so  they  zigzagged  it  down  the 
mountain.  This  old  switchback  system  is  now  disused, — 
a  series  of  curves  having  supplanted  the  inclines. 

One  of  the  wonders  of  the  world  fifty  years  ago  was  the 
old  Portage  railroad  across  the  Alleghany  Mountains  in 
Pennsylvania.  It  formed  a  link  in  the  system  of  canals 
and  railroads  constructed  by  the  state,  at  a  cost  of  seventeen 
million  five  hundred  thousand  dollars,  between  the  cities  of 
Philadelphia  and  Pittsburgh.  In  1838  David  Stevenson,  an 
English  civil  engineer,  said  of  the  Portage  railway,  that,  in 
boldness  of  design  and  difficulty  of  execution  he  could 
compare  it  to  no  modern  work  he  had  ever  seen,  excepting 
perhaps  the  roads  through  the  passes  of  the  Simplon 
and  Mt.  Cenis.  The  whole  distance  of  three  hundred  and 
ninety-three  miles  between  Philadelphia  and  Pittsburgh 
consisted  of  four  sections.  First  there  came  the  horse- 
railroad  from  Philadelphia  to  Columbia  —  eighty-two  miles ; 
road  completed  in  1833.  There  were  inclined  planes 
and  stationary  engines  at  each  end  of  this  section;  over  the 
intermediate  portion  of  the  line  the  cars  were  drawn  by 
horses.  It  seems  a  strange  idea  to  us  that  people  should 
ever  have  clung  to  the  thought  that  the  state  ought  to 
build  a  railroad,  and  that  private  individuals  should  have 
the  right  to  traverse  it  with  their  own  cars  drawn  by 
their  own  horses,  and  pay  toll  as  on  common  roads.  Yet 
such  was  the  plan  actually  tried  for  two  years  upon  the 

* 

Philadelphia  and  Columbia  railroad.  One  who  assisted 
in  the  construction  of  the  road  tells  us  that  the  drivers 
employed  by  various  firms  were  a  rough  and  stubborn 


128   WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OE  THE  RAILWAY. 

set  of  fellows,  and,  as  the  officers  of  the  railroad  had  no 
power  to  use  compulsion,  one  of  the  drivers  would  often 
block  the  track  for  a  considerable  time,  refusing  to  go  either 
forward  or  backward.  The  usual  remedy  was  to  have  the 
refractory  fellow  arrested,  taken  before  a  magistrate  many 
miles  off,  and  fined  according  to  the  law.  The  farmers  were 
bitterly  opposed  to  the  introduction  of  the  new-fangled 
locomotives,  and  fought  stubbornly  for  the  private-car  sys- 
tem. But  in  1834  the  locomotive  came  (from  Boston  where 
it  was  built),  and  soon  no  more  horses  were  to  be  seen  on 
the  road. 

At  Columbia,  passengers  and  freight  were  transferred  to 
the  boats  of  the  eastern  division  of  the  Pennsylvania  canal, 
which  extended  to  Hollidaysburg,  at  the  eastern  foot  of  the 
Alleghanies  (a  distance  of  one  hundred  and  seventy-two 
miles).  To  this  canal  the  Juniata  and  the  Susquehanna 
contributed  of  their  sparkling  waters.  The .  canal  boats 
were  built  in  sections,  and  at  the  foot  of  the  mountains 
were  taken  apart,  loaded  on  wheeled  trucks  and  so  run 
over  to  Johnstown  on  the  other  side,  via  the  Portage 
railroad.  From  J ohnstown  to  Pittsburgh  extended  the  west- 
ern division  of  the  canal.  It  remains  to  describe  the 
'.'Portage"  division,  in  length  thirty-six  miles,  and 
crossing  the  mountains  at  Blair's  Gap,  the  summit  of 
which  was  two  thousand  three  hundred  and  twenty-six 
feet  above  the  sea.  The  road  passed  over  eleven  levels, 
ten  inclined  planes,  and  four  viaducts,  and  through  a 
tunnel  which  was  the  first  of  its  kind  in  America.  The 
trains  of  four  cars  each  were  drawn  up  and  down  by 
stationary  engines,  one  train  ascending  as  the  other  descend- 
ed. The  rails  (rolled  in  Great  Britain)  were  chained  to 
cross  blocks  of  sandstone.    The  road  was  operated  for 


MOUNTAIN"  RAILWAYS. 


129 


twenty-one  years  without  a  serious  accident;  but  in  1854, 
the  opening  of  the  mountain  division  of  the  Pennsylvania 
railroad  rendered  useless  this  great  work,  built  by  our 
fathers  to  last,  as  they  thought,  for  generations.  To-day 
only  ruined  locks  and  broken  bridges  remain  to  tell  the 
story  of  the  quaint  predecessor  of  the  Pennsylvania  Central 
railroad.* 

The  old  Mountain  Top  Track  of  Virginia  (opened  in 
1854)  was  a  temporary  portion  of  a  proposed  through 
line  to  the  West.  It  was  four  miles  in  length,  and  crossed 
the  Blue  Eidge  at  Fish  Gap,  at  an  elevation  of  one  thou- 
sand eight  hundred  and  eighty-five  feet  above  tide  water, 
and  with  the  astonishing  average  gradient  of  two  hundred 
and  thirty-six  feet  to  the  mile.  The  peculiar  climbing  en- 
gines  made  for  the  road  rested  on  six  driving  wheels,  that  the 
adhesive  power  of  the  engine  might  be  as  great  as  possible; 
and  for  the  same  reason  the  water-tank  was  placed  on  the 
boiler,  and  the  supply  of  wood  stored  in  side-boxes  placed  on 
the  foot-board  of  the  locomotive.  These  devices,  with  the 
aid  of  air-brakes,  friction-brakes,  and  sand,  enabled  the 
locomotives  to  draw  their  loads  up  the  steep  grades  without 
an  accident. 

The  predecessor  of  all  the  modern  pleasure  railways  for 
the  ascent  of  lofty  mountains  is  the  Mt.  Washington  cog- 
rail  track  (finished  in  1869).  It  ascends  the  mountain  at 
an  average  grade  of  one  thousand  three  hundred  feet  to 
the  mile.  When  the  inventor,  Sylvester  Marsh,  of  Little- 
ton, New  Hampshire,  asked  his  state  legislature  for  a 
charter,  it  was  granted  amid  much  merriment,  and  the 

*Mr.  Solomon  W.  Roberts,  the  civil  engineer  of  the  Portage  road,  gives  in- 
teresting reminiscences  of  his  connection  with  it,  in  the  "Pennsylvania  Mag- 
azine of  History  and  Biography,,,  for  1877,  pages  370-393.  See  also  James 
Dredge's  "History  of  the  Pennsylvania  Railroad,1'  London  and  New  York,  1879. 

9 


130   WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 

suggestion  was  made  that  the  gentleman  also  receive  per- 
mission to  build  a  railroad  to  the  moon.  There  are,  in 
all,  six  ways  of  stopping  the  train  on  the  Mt.  Washing- 
ton road.  The  friction- brake  consists  of  an  iron  band 
encircling  each  wheel,  and  tightened  at  pleasure.  There 
are  also  atmospheric  brakes  at  the  side  of  each  car.  Not 
a  single  passenger  has  ever  been  injured  on  the  road.  In 
1869  the  axle  of  the  driving-wheel  of  the  locomotive  broke, 
but  the  train  was  instantly  stopped  without  further  dam- 
age. The  only  accident  recorded  is  that  which  happened 
when  some  thoughtless  person  started  an  empty  car  down 
the  track  from  the  summit;  the  car  shot  down  with  terrific 
velocity  and  was  shattered  into  splinters  at  the  bottom. 

The  immediate  successor  of  the  Mt.  Washington  road 
was  that  of  the  Arth  Eigi,  or  Bigi-Kulm,  three-fourths  of  a 
mile  long,  opened  in  1873.  One  of  the  engineers  of  the 
Eigi  road,  Herr  Biggenbach,  had  visited  the  Mt.  Washing- 
ton railroad,  and  afterward  modelled  his  road  upon  that. 
Kigi-Kulm  is  the  highest  of  the  seven  peaks  called  Eigi, 
and  the  view  from  its  summit  is  as  magnificent  as  that 
from  Mt.  Washington.  Another  railroad  ascends  from 
Vitznau,  on  Lake  Lucerne.  The  funicular  counterpoise 
railroad  up  the  Vaudois  Eigi  is  the  boldest  work  of  its  kind 
in  the  wTorld,  the  ascent  being  three  feet  in  five.  On  level 
ground  the  locomotive  of  the  Bigi-Kulm  road  looks  almost 
as  if  it  had  broken  down  behind  and  were  resting  on  its  fore- 
legs (or  wheels).  On  a  level  it  looks  as  much  out  of  place  as 
a  seal  on  land.  The  boiler  looks  like  a  huge  beer  bottle 
placed  vertically.  The  sides  of  the  tender  are  of  wire,  for 
the  sake  of  lightness.  The  seats  of  the  car  all  face  down- 
hill, and  foot-stools  serve  to  keep  the  passengers  from  slid- 
ing off  their  seats.    In  going  up,  the  car  precedes  the  loco- 


MOUNTAIN  RAILWAYS. 


131 


motive,  and  follows  it  in  descending,  no  couplings  being 
used.  To  guard  against  the  train  jumping  the  track  and 
being  hurled  down  the  dizzy  precipices  along  the  route,  a 
projecting  edge  runs  along  each  side  of  the  central  cogged 
rail,  and  the  engine  and  car  are  provided  with  strong  rods, 
the  ends  of  which  are  bent  in  such  a  manner  as  to  pass 
under  the  projections.  Any  jump  or  jerk  of  the  train  is, 
therefore,  made  impossible  by  the  pressure  of  the  rods 
against  the  under  surface  of  the  projections. 

Switzerland  has  at  least  two  other  inclined  railroads  — 
the  Uetliberg,  overlooking  Lake  Zurich,  and  that  on  the 
flanks  of  the  Giessbach.  The  latter  is  double-tracked,  and 
is  worked  by  the  equipoise  system.  The  excess  of  weight 
needed  in  order  that  the  descending  car  may  pull  up  the 
ascending  one,  is  a  little  over  a  ton.  The  weight  added 
consists  of  water,  which  is  filled  into  a  receiver  in  the  car 
just  before  it  starts  from  the  top  of  the  mountain,  and  is 
automatically  emptied  when  it  reaches  the  foot. 

The  city  of  Lyons,  France,  has  inclined  tramways  be- 
tween its  different  quarters.  In  this  case  also,  the,  descend- 
ing car  balances  the  ascending  one.  The  inclined  railways 
of  Cincinnati,  Ohio,  are  worked  by  stationary  engines.  The 
first  of  these  Cincinnati  railways  was  built  in  1872. 

The  latest  inclined  railway  is  that  of  Green  Mountain, 
in  the  island  of  Mt.  Desert,  Maine.  It  resembles  the  Mt. 
Washington  road.,  except  that  there  is  no  trestling,  the  track 
timbers  being  bolted  to  the  solid  ledge.  The  idea  of  the 
road  originated,  it  is  said,  with  a  very  stout  lady,  whose 
superfluous  flesh  rendered  it  an  impossibility  for  her  to 
enjoy  the  splendid  view  from  the  summit.  She  had  as- 
cended Eigi-Kulm  and  Mt.  Washington  by  railway,  and 
expressed  her  wonder  that  no  one  had  thought  of  a  similar 


132    WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 


means  of  ascending  Green  Mountain.  A  young  Bangor 
lawyer,  named  F.  H.  Glergue,  overheard  her  remark,  was 
struck  with  the  idea,  and  eventually  formed  a  company  by 
which  the  road  was  built  in  the  spring  and  summer  of  1883.* 

Brazil  has  an  inclined  railway  at  St.  Paul.  It  is  oper- 
ated by  wire  ropes,  and  was  built  by  James  Brunlees,  the 
English  engineer.f 

Perhaps  the  most  striking  of  the  mountain  tracks  is  that 
which  audaciously  climbs  the  smoking  crater  of  world- 
renowned  Vesuvius.  The  road  was  opened  June  6,  1880. 
A  broad  and  splendid  highway  leads  zigzagging  up  to  the 
foot  of  the  cone,  where,  on  a  level  spot  on  the  west  side 
of  the  mountain,  is  situated  the  lower  station,  or  depot. 
Straight  away  up  the  cone  from  this  point  stretches  the 
track,  looking  like  a  gigantic  ladder,  mounting  into  heaven 
at  the  appalling  angle  of  fifty  degrees  (average).  The 
upper  station  is  a  simple  but  tasteful  shed,  placed  about  one 
hundred  steps  from  the  rim  of  the  smoking  and  rumbling 
crater.  About  midway  the  inclination  reaches  sixty- three 
degrees,  which  to  most  people  seems  practically  perpendicu- 
lar, and  the  sensations  experienced  during  the  two  minutes 
required  to  pass  over  this  portion  of  the  track  may  be  better 
imagined  than  described.  The  road  is  double-tracked,  and 
there  is  a  counterpoise  of  cars,  one  up  and  one  down.  These 
are  worked  by  a  stationary  traction  engine.  The  boiler  of 
this  engine  was  drawn  up  the  carriage  road  by  twelve 
horses,  one  of  which  died  from  the  effects  of  the  strain  re- 
ceived. The  huge  pulleys  that  work  the  cars  were  pulled 
up  the  slippery  cone  by  the  united  efforts  of  ninety  men, 
and  once  at  the  top  they  were  of  service  in  hoisting  other 

*See  also  41  Science,"  April  4, 1884. 

t  Further  particulars  of  this  road  are  given  in  the  "  Railway  Review,"  Chi- 
cago, Oct.  20,  1883,  page  612. 


MOUOTAIK  RAILWAYS. 


134   WOKDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 


material.  There  was  great  perplexity  at  first  in  the  minds 
of  the  contrivers  of  the  road,  as  to  where  the  water  for 
the  engine  was  to  come  from.  But  the  constructor,  Dall 
Ongaro,  excavated  two  huge  cisterns,  and  then  laid  broad 
stretches  of  red  tile  on  the  surface  of  lava  crusts  and  cinders 
to  collect  rain  water  and  conduct  it  into  the  receptacles  pre- 
pared. The  joists  of  the  track  are  bolted  to  the  solid  lawa. 
A  single  cogged  rail  is  placed  on  a  continuous  beam,  about 
three  feet  high,  and  beneath  the  car  is  a  single  large  wheel 
running  on  the  rail;  but  the  car  is  steadied  by  two  other 
wheels  placed  obliquely  to  the  bottom  of  the  car,  and  run- 
ning on  a  projecting  edge  of  the  road-beam.  The  railway 
cost  one  hundred  and  fifty  thousand  dollars,  and  is  insured 
against  the  volcano  (!)  by  an  Italian  company,  for  one  hun- 
dred thousand  dollars. 

The  most  famous  mountain  railways  with  ordinary  trac- 
tion are,  in  Europe,  the  Semmering,  the  Brenner,  the 
Mt.  Cenis,  and  the  St.  Gothard;  in  North  America  the 
Central  Pacific  and  the  Denver  and  Rio  Grande,  each  de- 
scribed in  Chapter  III;  and  in  South  America  the  Callao, 
Lima,  and  Oroya  railway. 

The  Semmering  railroad  between  Vienna  and  Trieste 
was  the  precursor  and  prototype  .  of  the  great  Mt.  Cenis 
undertaking.  It  is  a  magnificent  engineering  achievement, 
its  peculiar  feature  being  its  great  viaducts;  these,  together 
with  its  tunnels  and  snow  sheds,  or  covered  galleries,  made 
its  cost  double  that  of  the  later  Brenner  line.  The  gradi- 
ent of  the  Semmering  is  one  foot  in  forty. 

The  Brenner  railroad,  completed  in  1867,  extends  across 
the  Alps  from  Innsbruck  to  Botzen,  connecting  Bavaria 
with  Italy.  It  climbs  over  the  pass  at  a  height  of  four 
thousand,  seven   hundred  and  seventy-five  feet,  passing 


MOUNTAIN  RAILWAYS. 


135 


through  twenty-three  tunnels  on  its  way.     In  ascending 
from  Innsbruck  a  deep  and  wide  lateral  valley  is  met  with; 
the  road  thereupon  turns  short,  and,  clinging  to  the  face  of 
the  mountain,  winds  around  until  it  has  encircled  the  side 
valley,  and  then  enters  t'he  opposite  mountain  at  a  point 
directly  in  front  of  that  where  it  turned  a  few  moments 
before,  only  considerably  higher  up.    Let  us  see  how  a 
writer  in  "  Chambers's  Journal"  describes  this  achievement: 
"  The  difficulty  and  its  solution  may  be  well  realized  by  im- 
agining a  railway  cut  in  the  face  of  a  long  row  of  houses 
(which  must  be  supposed  to  represent  one  side  of  the  main 
valley).    This  railway  starting  from  one  end  of  the  row  at 
the  basement  level  gradually  rises,  in  order  to  pass  over 
the  roofs  (that  is,  the  head  of  the  pass)  of  another  row  of 
houses  at  right  angles  to  and  at  the  end  of  the  first  row. 
In  its  course  it  encounters  a  side-street,  the  lateral  valley, 
with  no  outlet  at  the  other  end,  and  which  is  too  broad  to 
be  spanned  by  a  bridge.    Now  the  line  at  this  point  has 
reached  the  second  floor;  and  to  get  to  the  opposite  houses 
and  pursue  its  course,  it  turns  a  sharp  corner,  runs  along 
one  side  of  the  blind  street,  crosses  it  at  the  further  or 
blind  end  by  merely  clinging  still  to  the  houses,  returns 
along  the  other  side,  rounds  the  corner  into  the  main  street 
and  resumes  its  course.    During  this  detour  the  ascent  has 
been  continued  uninterruptedly,  so  that  on  the  return  of 
the  line  to  the  desired  opposite  corner  it  has  mounted  to  the 
third  floor.    Applying  this  illustration,  the  reader  will  per- 
ceive the  ingenious  yet  simple  solution  of  the  difficulty. 

"  The  effect  on  reaching  the  first  corner  of  the  lateral  val- 
ley is  most  remarkable.  The  line  is  seen  at  the  opposite 
corner  far  above  the  traveller's  head  entering  a  tunnel:  and 
how  he  is  going  to  get  there  is  a  puzzle  which  he  hardly 


136  wokders  a:nt>  curiosities  of  the  railway. 

solves  before  he  finds  himself  on  the  spot  looking  down  on 
the  corner  he  has  just  left,  wondering  how  he  ever  came 
from  there. 

"  But  even  this  striking  instance  of  engineering  triumphs 
is  eclipsed  by  a  portion  of  the  line  on  the  other  side  of  the 
pass.    Pursuing  the  direction  he  has  already  come,  the 
traveller  has  stopped  in  the  descent  at  Schelleberg,  a 
small  station  perched  at  an  enormous  height  above  an  ex- 
pansive valley,  when  he  perceives  a  village  five  hundred  feet 
almost  perpendicularly  below  him,  which  he  is  informed 
is  the  next  station.    It  would  not  take  long  to  reach  this 
village  (Gossensass)  by  a  direct  descent,  but  in  a  train  he 
has  to  run  far  past  it,  always  descending,  then  turn  com- 
pletely round,  and  run  back  again  in  the  direction  he  has 
come  from,  but  now  on  a  level  with  Gossensass.    But  at 
the  point  where  this  evolution  has  to  be  made  occurs 
another  lateral  valley,  much  longer  than  the  first  alluded 
to;  and  this  time  one  which  it  is  desired  to  cross,  as  Gos- 
sensass lies,  as  it  were,  on  the  basement  of  the  house  on  the 
third  floor  of  which  is  Schelleberg.     The  train  proceeds, 
therefore,  to  turn  the  corner  into  the  side  street  as  before; 
but  without  pursuing  the  street  to  its  end,  it  suddenly 
dives  into  one  of  the  houses,  makes  a  complete  circuit  of  its 
interior,  and  emerges  in  the  opposite  direction;  returning 
to  the  corner  whence  it  started  by  means  of  the  same  houses, 
but  on  a  lower  floor.    The  appearance  of  this  engineering 
feat  is  quite  bewildering;   and  after  tunnelling  into  the 
hill  on  the  sharp  curve,  and  then  finding  himself  proceed- 
ing back  toward  the  place  he  has  just  come  from,  the  trav- 
eller experiences  a  difficulty  in  believing  that  the  line 
parallel  with*  him,  but  almost  over  his  head,  is  the  one  he 
has  just  been  passing  over.1' 


MOUNTAIN  RAILWAYS. 


137 


The  St.  Gothard  railway  was  completed  in  1880,  after 
six  years  of  labor,  and  the  expenditure  of  forty  million 
dollars.  It  extends  from  Immensee  in  Switzerland  to 
Chiasso  in  Italy.  There  are  fifty-six  tunnels,  with  an 
aggregate  length  of  twenty-five  miles.  "  The  locomotive," 
says  a  recent  writer,  "scuffies  up  a  steep  road  for  a  while, 
then  thoughtfully  approaches  a  mountain  that  is  too  hard 
to  climb,  and,  instead  of  skipping  along  the  edge  and  elud- 
ing it,  plunges  boldly  into  it,  makes  a  completer  circuit  in  a 
spiral  tunnel,  and  comes  out  two  hundred  feet  above  where 
it  went  in.  This  adroit  trick  is  resorted  to  seven  times, 
and  in  one  big  mountain  the  locomotive  actually  accom- 
plishes two  circuits  of  a  mile  each;  rising  in  corkscrew 
fashion,  and  emerging  triumphant  up  where  the  eagles 
brood."  Nobody  can  pass  over  such  a  magnificent  road  as 
this,  with  its  fifty-six  tunnels,  its  thirty-two  bridges,  and 
dozen  huge  viaducts,  without  being  impressed  anew  with 
admiration  for  the  power  and  skill  of  man,  and  still  more 
with  reverence  for  the  stupendous  snowy  mountains,  and 
sounding  cataracts  of  nature.  Nor  are  the  natural  beau- 
ties of  the  pass  injured  by  the  railway,  which  rather  adds 
to  the  picturesqueness  of  the  scenery  by  its  bridges  and 
terraces.  There  are  some  masses  of  debris  from  the  tun- 
nels,  which  are  now  somewhat  of  an  eye-sore,  but  nature 
will  soon  drape  them  with  beauty.* 

We  have  not  yet  spoken  of  the  great  St.  Gothard 
Tunnel  on  this  railroad.  It  is  the  longest  tunnel  in  the 
world  (nine  and  one-fourth  miles),  being  about  one  and  a 
half  miles  longer  than  the  Mt.  Cenis  tunnel.  The  cost  was 
twelve  million  dollars.     The  motive  power  that  enabled 

*From  certain  outlooks  on  the  St.  Gothard  road  the  height  is  so  great 
that  cattle  pasturing  far  down  in  the  valleys  seem  no  larger  than  ants  on  a  table- 
cloth. 


138   WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 

the  fifty  drills  to  advance  twenty-one  feet  a  day  was  com- 
pressed air;  and  this  as  it  escaped  took  back  with  it  the 
deleterious  gases  and  the  vitiated  air  thrown  off  by  the 
explosion  of  the  dynamite,  and  by  the  bodies  of  the  laborers. 
During  the  prosecution  of  the  work  three  hundred  and  ten 
laborers  were  killed,  and  eight  hundred  and  seventy-seven 
wounded.  The  originator  and  first  constructor  of  the  road 
and  tunnel  was  Louis  Favrey,  of  Geneva,  who  died  before 
the  work  was  completed. 

.  The  idea  of  the  Mt.  Genis  tunnel  was  first  broached  in 
1832  by  a  Mr.  Medail.  The  plan  of  using  compressed  air 
for  working  drills,  and  of  employing  mountain  streams  as  a 
power  for  compressing  the  air  was  the  idea  of  three  young 
Italian  engineers  —  Sommellier,  Grandis,  and  Grattoni.  On 
Christmas  Day,  of  1870,-  the  working  parties  met  in  the 
heart  of  the  mountain,  and  the  two  sets  of  excavations  did 
not  vary  more  than  one  foot  and  a  half  from  the  same  level. 
The  tunnel  is  seven  and  seven-tenths  miles  long. 

As  far  back  as  1820  the  idea  of  a  tunnel  through  the 
Hoosac  Mountain  began  to  be  discussed.  There  being  no 
railroads  at  that  time,  it  was  intended  to  make  the  tunnel 
the  passage-way  of  a  canal  to  connect  the  waters  of  the 
Atlantic  with  those  of  the  Erie  canal.  In  1852  the  Troy 
and  Greenfield  Eailroad  Company  was  incorporated  for  the  • 
purpose  of  constructing  an  iron  way  through  the  mountains 
and  along  the  Deerfield  and  Hoosac  Valleys.  Work  on  the 
tunnel  was  begun  in  1852  with  a  groove  and  core  machine 
for  drilling  the  rock.  This  machine  proved  worthless,  and, 
after  eleven  years  of  various  vicissitudes  and  fluctuations  of 
fortune  and  suspensions  of  labor,  a  new  start  was  taken  in 
1863.  This  time  a  drill  was  used  that  had  been  invented 
by  Charles  Burleigh,  of  Fitchburg.    It  consists  simply  of  a 


MOUNTAIN  RAILWAYS. 


139 


cylinder  and  piston  worked  by  compressed  air,  and  driving, 
a  drill  at  the  rate  of  three  hundred  strokes  a  minute. 
Several  of  these  drills  were  operated  at  the  same  time,  and 
Deerfield  River  supplied  the  power.  Ten  years  these  light- 
ning-swift Burleigh  drills  plied  their  task,  and  then  daylight 
shone  through  the  tunnel  (November  27,  1873).  The  rate 
of  progress  was  doubled  after  the  discovery  of  nitro-glycer- 
ine;  but  still  the  delays  had  been  long  and  vexatious,  and 
the  cost  of  the  work  amounted  to  fourteen  million  dollars. 
One  of  the  greatest  triumphs  of  modern  civil  engineering 
was  the  meeting  of  the  various  excavations  of  this  tunnel 
on  planes  separated  from  each  other  vertically  by  only 
five-sixteenths  of  an  inch!  America  beat  Europe  in  this 
respect,  for  the  difference  in  the  Mt.  Cenis  tunnel  was 
one  foot  and  a  half.  The  problem  was,  first,  to  run  a 
perfectly  straight  line  across  the  mountain,  to  serve  as  a 
basis  for  trigonometrical  calculations.  In  running  this 
line  a  broad  path  was  cut  through  the  forest,  and  sight- 
ing-posts set  up,  both  on  the  Hoosac  and  on  neighboring 
mountains.  Repeated  surveys  were  made  in  all  states 
of  the  atmosphere,  and  the  line  finally  determined  upon 
was  indicated  by  bolts  fixed  at  intervals  in  the  •  solid 
rock.  In  order  to  furnish  two  new  faces  upon  which  to 
drill,  and  at  the  same  time  provide  for  the  permanent  ven- 
tilation of  the  tunnel,  a  great  central  shaft  was  sunk  at 
a  cost  of  half  a  million  dollars  and  four  years'  work.  It 
will  be  seen,  then,  that  after  the  completion  of  the  shaft, 
there  were  four  parties  of  men  at  work,  hewing  away  there 
blindly  in  the  heart  of  a  great  mountain,  yet  relying  so 
firmly  on  their  calculations  that  they  never  for  a  moment 
doubted  that  they  were  not  all  working  in  one  straight  line, 
and  on  one  and  the  same  level,  and  that  in  the  course  of 


140    WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 


years  they  would  meet.  During  the  sinking  of  the  central 
shaft  (one  thousand  and  twenty-eight  feet  deep)  a  terrible 
accident  occurred.  A  tank  of  gasoline,  which  stood  near 
the  hoisting  apparatus,  caught  fire  and  instantly  envel- 
oped the  shed  and  the  apparatus  in  flames.  Thirteen 
men  were  at  the  bottom  of  the  shaft.  All  communication 
with  the  hoisting  apparatus  was  cut  off,  and  presently  a 
mass  of  burning  timbers,  steel  drills,  and  other  tools  fell 
down  the  shaft  upon  the  heads  of  the  unfortunate  men. 
Even  if  the  burning  timbers  had  not  been  sufficient  to  kill 
them,  the  waters  would  have  done  so,  for  immediately  upon 
the  cessation  of  the  pumping  it  rose  rapidly  around  them. 
They  all  perished,  and  their  bodies  were  not  recovered  for  a 
year.  During  the  quarter  of  a  century  that  the  tunnel  was 
in  building,  two  hundred  lives,  in  all,  were  lost.  Mr.  N.  H. 
Eggleston,  in  the  "  Atlantic  Monthly,"  for  March,  1882,  de- 
scribes the  sensations  of  those  who  descended  the  central 
shaft:  "  At  every  descent  of  the  bucket  it  seemed  as  though 
those  in  it  were  being  dashed  down  the  dark  pit  to  almost 
certain  destruction.  Speed  was  necessary,  and  the  ma- 
chinery was  so  arranged  that  the  descent  of  over  a  thousand 
feet  was  made  in  a  little  more  than  a  minute.  The  sensa- 
tions experienced  by  those  who  descended  the  shaft  were 
peculiar.  First,  there  was  the  sensation  of  rapid,  helpless 
falling  through  space  in  the  darkness;  then,  as  the  speed 
was  at  last  abruptly  arrested,  it  seemed  for  a  moment  as 
though  the  motion  had  been  reversed,  and  one  were  being  as 
rapidly  elevated  to  the  surface  again."  The  same  writer, 
after  remarking  that  now  that  the  tunnel  is  finished  and  in 
use,  a  perpetual  cloud  of  smoke  pervades  it,  each  of  the 
forty  trains  a  day  adding  its  quota,  so  that  it  is  impossible 
to  see  more  than  a  few  yards  in  either  direction  within  the 


MOUNTAIN  RAILWAYS. 


141 


bore,  —  continues  as  follows:  "  No  artificial  light,  not  even 
the  head-lights  of  the  locomotives,  can  penetrate  the  dark- 
ness for  any  considerable  distance.  The  engineer  sees 
nothing,  but  feels  his  way  by  faith  and  simple  push  of  steam 
through  the  five  miles  of  solemn  gloom.  If  there  is  any 
occasion  for  stopping  him  on  his  way  through  the  thick 
darkness,  which  may  almost  literally  be  felt,  the  men  who 
constantly  patrol  the  huge  cavern  to  see  that  nothing  ob- 
structs the  passage,  do  not  think  of  signalling  the  approach- 
ing train  in  the  common  way.  They  carry  with  them  pow- 
erful torpedoes,  which,  whenever  there  is.  occasion,  they 
fasten  to  the  rails  by  means  of  screws.  The  wheels  of  the 
locomotive,  striking  these,  produce  a  loud  explosion,  and 
this  is  the  tunnel  signal  to  the  engineer  to  stop  his  train." 

The  most  stupendous  feat  of  mountain  engineering  since 
the  building  of  the  road  through  the  Simplon  Pass  has  been 
accomplished  by  the  American  engineer,  Henry  Meiggs. 
The  Callao,  Lima  and  Oroya  railroad,  constructed  by  him 
for  the  Peruvian  government,  crosses  the  Andes  by  a  tunnel 
at  the  enormous  height  of  fifteen  thousand,  six  hundred  and 
forty-five  feet,  or  nearly  three  miles  above  sea  level,  being 
a  point  only  one  hundred  and  thirty-six  feet  below  the  icy 
summit  of  Mt.  Blanc.  This  is  indeed  A  Railroad  among 
the  Clouds,  and  the  whistle  of  the  locomotive  is  heard  at  no 
higher  point  on  the  globe.*  It  is  not  the  first  great  road 
in  Peru.  Centuries  ago  all  the  difficulties  that  beset  the 
courageous  modern  engineer  were  met  and  conquered  in 
this  land  of  stupendous  scenery,  by  a  now  vanishing  race, 
and  the  remains  of  the  royal  road  of  the  Incas  yet  testify  to 
the  magnificence  of  an  empire,  only  to  be  compared  with 

*  The  Denver  and  Rio  Grande  narrow  gauge  road  crosses  Fremont  Pass  at 
an  altitude  of  eleven  thousand,  five  hundred  and  forty  feet,  being  the  next  high- 
est railroad  in  the  world. 


142   WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 


that  of  the  Romans  and  the  Aztecs,  in  the  elaborate  organi- 
zation and  discipline  of  its  people,  and  the  grandeur  of  its 
public  works.  The  great  road  of  the  Incas  was  conducted 
over  mountains  of  perpetual  snow,  through  galleries  cut 
for  miles  through  the  stubborn  rock,  over  ravines  filled 
up  with  solid  masonry,  and  over  rivers  and  dizzy  chasms  by 
means  of  great  suspension  bridges  swinging  in  the  air. 
There  were  mile-stones  at  regular  intervals,  and  guide- 
posts  through  the  sandy  wastes,  while  trees,  and  odoriferous 
shrubs,  and  fountains  along  the  sides,  offered  their  refresh- 
ment in  unstinted  measure  to  the  weary  traveller.  But  the 
empire  of  th,e  Incas  has  passed  away,  and  we  are  now  called 
upon  to  admire  the  mechanical  skill  and  daring  energy  of  a 
plain  American  citizen  who  comes  from  a  land  where  all 
are  Incas. 

Up  and  up,  through  some  of  the  most  gloomy  and  sub- 
lime scenery  on  earth,  zigzags  the  iron  road,  rising  four 
thousand,  nine  hundred  and  ten  feet  in  the  first  thirty-nine 
miles,  spanning  the  terrible  gorge  of  Los  Infernillos,  cross- 
ing the  famous  Verrugas  viaduct,  darting  through  its  sixty- 
one  tunnels,  climbing,  climbing,  higher  and  higher  among 
the  crags,  up  toward  the  gigantic  snow-peaks  that  soar  into 
the  everlasting  blue  on  every  side,  until  at  last  the  great 
summit  tunnel  is  reached,  "  Tunel  cle  la  Cima,"  a  cavern 
three  thousand,  eight  hundred  and  forty-seven  feet  in 
length,  bored  through  an  icy  plateau  which  is  still  far 
below  the  summits  of  the  great  peaks  around  it. 

The  difficulties  encountered  by  the  workmen  in  the 
construction  of  this  Peruvian  road  were  many  and  dis- 
heartening. All  the  material  had  to  be  transported  up  the 
mountains  on  the  backs  of  mules;  in  some  places  the  road- 
bed could  be  hewn  in  no  other  way  than  by  lowering  the 


MOUNTAIN  EAILWAYS.  143 

laborers  by  ropes  over  the  face  of  the  cliffs;  at  the  summit 
tunnel  the  extreme  cold  and  the  rarefied  nature  of  the  air, 
together  with  the  continual  percolation  of  snow-water,  made 
the  progress  of  work  very  slow  and  discouraging ;  only 
natives  of  the  mountains  could  work  there  at  all,  and  even 
they  suffered  extremely  from  vertigo,  bleeding  at  the  nose 
and  ears,  and  sickness  at  the  stomach.  During  the  seven 
years  that  the  building  of  the  road  was  going  on,*  ten 
thousand  Chinese  and  Chilian  laborers  died  from  the  effects 
of  the  climate  and  from  epidemic  diseases.  Here  indeed 
was  there  need  of  an  iron  will  and  an  indomitable  purpose, 
and  the  triumph  of  these  over  such  terrible  obstacles  lends 
to  the  story  of  the  building  of  the  Andean  railroad  an 
interest  as  inspiring  as  that  produced  by  the  story  of  the 
Central  Pacific. 

It  may  easily  be  imagined  that  the  steep  grade  and  the 
numberless  precipices  of  the  Lima  and  Oroya  road  are  well 
adapted  for  producing  a  thrill  of  pleasure  or  terror,  as 
the  case  may  be,  in  ; the  nerves  of  those  for  the  first  time 
traversing  the  road  from  the  summit  downward.  Mr.  J. 
E.  Montgomery  in  "  Scribner's  Monthly,"  for  August,  1877, 
gives  a  vivacious  account  of  the  descent  of  a  party  of  men 
in  a  hand-car  from  a  point  near  the  summit  to  the  plains. 
(It  is  from  his  article  that  the  facts  in  the  preceding  account 
have  been  taken) : 

"  At  Anchi,  twelve  thousand  feet  above  the  Pacific,  the 
hand-car  is  loaded  with  its  freight  of  six  adventurous  sight- 
seers, closely  braced  together.  *  *  *  As  we  descend  in 
our  rough  vehicle,  at  the  rate  of  sixty  miles  an  hour;  flying 

*  It  was  finished  in  1877  as  far  as  Oroya,  beyond  the  mountains.  It  is  in- 
tended that  this  railroad  shall  connect  the  Atlantic  and  Pacific  Oceans,  and 
open  up  to  commerce  the  great  Amazonian  Valley. 


144   WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 


across  aerial  viaducts,  or  dashing  through  sepulchral  tun- 
nels; threatened  now  to  be  crushed  between  converging 
mountain-walls,  or  precipitated  from,  pendulous  terraces, 
the  foaming  Eimac  emulating  the  maddening  speed;  now 
glancing  back  to  take  a  last  look  at  the  glistening  pinna- 
cles of  the  receding  Andes;  or  straining  eagerly  forward 
to  catch  the  first  glimpse  of  the  royal  city  of  the  plain 
and  the  shining  ocean,  the  magnificence  of  the  scenery  and 
the  magnitude  of  Mr.  Meiggs's  achievement  break  upon  us 
with  fresh  force,  and  not  for  any  peril  of  the  way  would  we 
forego  the  exhilaration  and  novelty  of  the  trip.  Far  other- 
wise was  it  with  one  of  the  party,  a  stately  commodore. 
He  who  would  face  unflinchingly  a  whole  broadside  of  mur- 
derous missiles,  sprang  from  the  car  after  ten  miles  over 
the  wildest  part  of  the  route,  declaring  that  nothing  would 
tempt  him  to  repeat  such  a  foolhardy  experiment.  For  the 
rest  of  us  the  excitement  and  exhilaration  of  this  mode  of 
travel  became  so  attractive  that  we  often  went  up  to  Anchi 
for  the  sole  purpose  of  making  the  down  trip." 


CHAPTER  IX. 

THE  VERTICAL  RAILWAY.* 

nriHE  fascination  of  applied  science  is  nowhere  more  di- 
rectly  felt  than  in  our  modern  methods  of  transit  from 
place  to  place.  The  bicycle,  with  its  premonitory  tinkle 
and  tiny  signal  lantern,  the  sumptuous  steamship,  the  pal- 
ace car,  the  passenger  elevator  —  which  of  all  these  is  the 
most  interesting  vehicle  of  locomotion  it  were  hard  to  say. 
But  certainly,  in  respect  of  smooth  and  noiseless  movement 
and  general  comfort,  the  elevator  (or  "  vertical  railway,"  as 
its  inventor  called  it)  leads  all  the  rest  It  is  only  some 
ten  or  twelve  years  since  the  vertical  railway  began  to  come 
into  general  use  in  the  large  cities  of  this  country  and 
Europe.  A  score  of  years  ago,  in  the  United  States,  build- 
ings were  rarely  carried  up  more  than  four  or  five  stories, 
and  the  necessity  for  freight  and  passenger  elevators  was 
not  very  great.  To-day  the  great  height  to  which  buildings 
are  carried  makes  the  necessity  for  some  kind  of  rapid  and 
easy  vertical  transit  almost  imperative.  Cars  and  platforms 
hoisted  by  steel  ropes  and  steam  machinery  have  hitherto 
supplied  this  want,  and  in  spite  of  the  popular  delusion  that 
a  high  percentage  of  risk  attends  their  use,  and  in  spite  of 
the  lingering  belief  of  hardy  stair-climbers  that  they  are  an 
effeminate  and  unnecessary  innovation,  the  manufacture 
and^sale  of  them  proceed  in  a  continually  increasing  ratio. 
The  story  of  the  invention  of  the  passenger  elevator  has 


*  First  published  in  "  Harper's  Monthly." 
10  145 


146    WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OE  THE  RAILWAY. 


never  up  to  this  time  been  told,  and  the  present  chapter  is 
therefore  a  new  contribution  to  the  history  of  inventions. 

Steam  hoists  of  one  kind  or  another  for  the  lifting  of 
freight  have  been  in  use  for  perhaps  a  century.  In  America 
the  first  man  to  manufacture  platform  freight  elevators 
seems  to  have  been  Henry  Waterman,  of  New  York  city. 
As  early  as  1850  one  of  his  machines  was  in  use  by  Hecker, 
of  New  York.  The  Tathams  had  them  in  1853,  and  at 
about  the  same  time  either  Waterman's  machine  or  some 
very  like  them  were  in  use  in  the  establishment  of  Harper 
and  Brothers.  A  cut  of  Waterman's  machine,  made  from 
a  rough  sketch,  is  given  on  the  next  page.*  The  elevator 
was  operated  by  means  of  a  lever  within  the  car  (or  rather 
within  the  frame-work  of  the  car  :  the  first  closed  car  was 
designed  by  Otis  Tufts).  The  lever  took  the  place  of  the 
modern  hand  rope  (or  shipper  rope),  and  served  to  throw  the 
driving  machinery  into  or  out  of  gear.  Waterman's  shop 
was  in  Duane  street,  near  Centre.  About  the  same  time 
that  he  was  making  elevators  in  New  York,  George  H. 
Fox  and  Company,  of  Boston,  were  also  building  them  and 
sending  them  to  various  parts  of  the  country.  The  worm 
gear  was  used  by  this  latter  firm  in  1850,  and  wire  ropes 
in  1852,  as  well  as  the  rack  on  the  guide  beams. . 

In  1857  the  firm  of  William  Adams  and  Company,  Boston, 
put  sixteen  freight  elevators  into  the  newly  built  granite 
warehouse  called  the  State  Street  Block.  These  elevators 
were  at  first  worked  by  hempen  ropes,  and  the  shafting  that 
conveyed  the  power  extended  continuously  through  all  the 
stores  of  the  block.  Other  early  inventors  and  patentees  of 
portions  of  elevator  machinery  were  Mr.  E.  G.  Otis,  of  Yon- 

*  The  original  sketch  is  in  the  possession  of  Mr.  Charles  Whittier,  presi- 
dent of  the  Whittier  Machine  Company,  of  Boston.  The  author  is  indebted  to 
the  courtesy  of  Harper  and  Brothers  for  permission  to  use  this  and  the  follow- 
ing cut  in  the  present  work. 


THE  VERTICAL  RAILWAY. 


147 


kers,  New  York,  and  Mr.  Cyrus  W.  Baldwin,  of  Brooklyn, 
New  York.  The  experiments  and  inventions  of  the  latter 
gentleman  have  brought  hydraulic  elevators  to  a  state  of 
great  perfection. 


waterman's  elevator. 


Accidents  were  continually  happening  to  the  early  eleva- 
tors, owing  to  the  breaking  of  ropes.  It  was  an  accident  to 
an  elevator  of  his  own  make  that  led  Mr.  Albert  Betteley,  of 
the  firm  of  William  Adams  and  Company,  of  Boston,  to  the 
invention  of  the  air-cushion  safety  device,  considered  by  many 
as  the  best  of  such  devices.  The  accident  alluded  to  hap- 
pened at  the  store  of  Emmons,  Danforth  and  Scudder,  in  the 
State  Street  Block.     The  elevator  platform,  loaded  with 


148    WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 

seven  boxes  of  sugar,  had  fallen  from  a  great  height  into 
the  cellar  beneath  the  hoistway,  and  the  pulleys  and  gear- 
ing at  the  top  had  been  flung  clear  over  upon  the  neighboring 
stores.  Mr.  Betteley  was  summoned  to  the  scene.  He,  of 
course,  expected  to  find  a  complete  wreck  in  the  cellar;  but 
what  was  his  surprise  to  find  the  boxes  of  sugar  scarcely 
injured  !  He  set  his  wits  to  work,  and  soon  reached  the 
conclusion  that,  as  the  cellar  was  nearly  air-tight,  the 
rapidity  of  the  descent  of  the  platform  had  compressed  the 
air  so  as  to  form  an  air-cushion,  which  had  broken  the  vio- 
lence of  the  fall.  After  experimenting  with  a  model,  and 
satisfying  himself  of  the  truth  of  his  surmise,  Mr.  Betteley 
took  out  a  patent  for  an  air-cushion.  Otis  Tufts  used  to 
jocularly  call  this  "  patenting  a  hole  in  the  ground,1'  in 
allusion  to  the  air  reservoir  formed  beneath  the  elevator. 
The  object  of  the  invention  was  to  check  gradually  the  mo- 
mentum of  a  falling  car  by  making  the  hoistway  nearly 
air-tight,  excavating  an  air-reservoir  at  the  bottom,  and,  if 
desired,  building  the  bottom  of  the  car  in  a  parachute  form. 
This  air-cushion  device  is  now  universally  used  in  connec- 
tion  with  dumb-waiters,  and  also  somewhat  extensively  in 
connection  with  passenger  elevators.  It  will  be  alluded  to 
again  when  we  come  to  speak  of  elevator  perils. 

To  return  to  the  elevator  proper.  The  name  of  Otis 
Tufts  has  just  been  incidentally  mentioned.  It  is  to  the 
brilliant  genius  and  energy  of  this  Boston  inventor  (now 
deceased)  that  the  credit  is  due  of  inventing  and  construct- 
ing the  first  passenger  elevator  in  the  world  driven  by  steam 
power.  His  "  Vertical  Screw  Eailway "  was  patented  by 
him  August  9,  1859,  and  the  first  one  constructed  was  put 
up  in  the  same  year  in  the  Fifth  Avenue  Hotel,  New  York. 
The  hotel  was  then  in  process  of  construction  (William 


THE  VEKTICAL  RAILWAY 


149 


Washburn,  architect;  Paran  Stevens,  Hiram  Hitchcock,  and 
others,  lessees).  •  An  exactly  similar  screw  elevator  was 
soon  after  put  into  the  Continental  Hotel  in  Philadelphia  — 
a  hotel  also  leased  to  Paran  Stevens.  These  two  machines 
were  the  only  screw  elevators  for  passengers  ever  con- 
structed. 

People  would  not  at  first  be- 
lieve a  vertical  railway  a  possible 
thing.    Mr.  Hiram  Hitchcock,  the 
present  proprietor  of  the  hotel, 
says,  in  a  private  letter  to  the 
writer,    that    "  hundreds,  even 
thousands,  of  persons  visited  the 
elevator  daily.    Men  of  note  such 
as  the  Prince  of  Wales,  the  Prince 
de  Joinville,  and  others,  as  well  as 
eminent   foreign   engineers  and 
scientific  persons,  were  greatly  in- 
terested in  it."    The  object  of  the 
inventor  was  to  produce  a  machine 
which  should  be  perfectly  safe,  and 
he  succeeded  in  doing  so.  The 
screw  consisted  of  a  great  solid 
iron  shaft  twenty 
inches   in  diam- 
eter, and  cast  in 
sections.     It  ex- 
tended to  the  top 
of  the  building, 
and  was  not  en- 
closed    in  any 

THE  FIRST  PASSENGER  ELEVATOR. 


150    WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 


hoistway.  A  huge  iron  nut  with  screws  encircled  the  shaft. 
Within  the  nut  were  rollers  running  upon  the  upper  side 
of  the  thread  of  the  shaft  screw.  In  the  language  of  the 
inventor,  "  The  rollers  were  virtually  carriage- wheels  travel- 
ling upon  a  rail  wound  spirally  along  a  cylinder."  Upon 
the  nut  rested  the  car.  The  nut  did  not  turn  round,  being 
prevented  from  doing  so  by  a  spur  attached  to  it,  and 
moving  vertically  with  it  along  one  of  the  guide  rails. 
When  the  shaft  was  rotated  the  rollers  inside  the  nut  wound 
upward  around  the  great  spiral  thread  of  the  shaft,  and 
thus  by  a  continuous  movement  elevated  the  nut,  and  the 
car  with  it.  A  slot  in  the  nut  enabled  it  to  pass  by  the 
stays  that  held  the  shaft  to  the  wall.  The  car  was  square 
and  closed.  The  governing  rope  passed  through  the  car. 
There  was  an  automatic  stop,  a  friction  brake,  automatically 
closing  doors,  a  fluid  retarder,  and  a  second  set  of  rollers 
travelling  directly  upon  the  body  of  the  cylindrical  shaft  in 
order  to  steady  the  movement  of  the  nut.  The  fluid  retarder 
requires  a  word  of  explanation.  The  descent  of  the  car 
was  effected  by  its  own  gravity,  but  the  descent  was  subject 
to  continual  acceleration.  To  correct  this  the  fluid  retarder 
(also  called  pitcher-pump)  wras  invented.  It  was  made  on 
the  principle  of  water  escaping  from  an  aperture.  When 
the  car  reached  the  top  of  the  building,  the  gearing  which 
automatically  reversed  the  movement  also  set  in  operation 
the  fluid  retarders.  The  elevator  was  perfectly  safe,  since 
the  car  could  not  get  off  the  screw.  But  it  was  very  expen- 
sive (costing  twenty-five  thousand  dollars),  and  was,  more- 
over, -rather  slow  and  clumsy.  Letters  patent  of  this 
invention,  with  specifications  and  drawings,  were  filed  by 
Mr.  Tufts  in  the  Great  Seal  Patent-office,  in  London,  on  the 
19th  of  March,  1860,  through  the  patent  agent  Richard  A. 


THE  VERTICAL  RAILWAY. 


151 


Brooman,  166  Fleet  street.  In  1875,  the  Fifth  Avenue 
screw  elevator  gave  place  to  a  modern  rope  elevator,  to  the 
regret  of  many  who  had  for  thirteen  years  admired  its 
massive  proportions,  its  stately  movement,  and  its  perfect 
safety.  When  removed,  it  was  still  in  excellent  condition. 
Mr.  Darling,  one  of  the  present  proprietors  of  the  Fifth 
Avenue  Hotel,  has  invented  a  rotary  retarder,  which  is  used 
with  their  rope  elevator,  and  works  admirably. 

We  now  come  to  the  passenger  rope  elevator.  The  screw 
elevator  was  evidently  not  the  thing.  May  28,  1861,  Mr. 
Tufts  patented  an  improvement  on  the  old  rope  elevator 
which,  combined  with  various  previous  elevator  patents  of 
his,  formed  the  passenger  elevator  substantially  as  it  now 
exists.  His  great  and  radical  improvement  consisted  in 
providing  a  number  of  ropes,  each  of  ivhich  tvould  sustain 
five  times  the  weight  of  the  car,  the  strain  on  these  ropes 
being  equally  distributed  by  a  system  of  levers.  Previously 
there  had  been  but  one  rope,  which  was  continually  break- 
ing. To-day  there  is  hardly  a  passenger  elevator  in  the 
world  without  two  or  more  ropes  "yoked"  to  the  car.  The 
first  one  constructed  for  Mr.  Tufts,  and  placed  in  the  Ameri- 
can House,  in  Hanover  street,.  Boston,  in  1868,  has  its  car 
suspended  by  six  steel  ropes,  each  tested  to  a  ten-ton  strain. 
The  elevator  with  its  engine  was  constructed  by  Moore  and 
Wyman  in  the  most  solid  style,  and  has  run  for  fourteen 
years  without  an  accident.  A  brass  plate  in  the  car  has 
upon  it  the  words  "  Vertical  Railway,1 '  as  well  as  the  dates 
of  Mr.  Tufts's  various  patents.  At  the  end  of  the  first 
seven  years  of  the  running  of  this  elevator  a  new  steel  rope 
was  substituted  for  one  of  the  old  ones,  but  the  old  one  was 
found  to  be  uninjured. 

The  intervention  of  the  civil  war  put  a  complete  stop  to 


152    WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 

the  introduction  of  the  new  invention,  and  it  was  not  until 
about  1870  that  rope  elevators  began  to  come  into  general 
use.    A  good  many  of  the  old  patents  have  been  allowed 
to  expire,  i.e.,  they  have  now  become  common  property. 
Europe  is  behindhand  in  the  use  of  this  invention.  .  Many 
elevators  are,  however,  in  use  there,  and  quite  a  number  of 
American  make  are  annually  sent  over  to  France,  Germany, 
and  England.    The  Charing  Cross  Hotel  and  the  Langham 
Hotel  in  London  have  direct-acting  hydraulic  elevators,  i.e., 
the  car  rests  directly  upon  a  piston  working  in  a  water- 
cylinder.    This  simple  form  of  hydraulic  elevator  is  much 
used  in  this  country  also.    The  machines  are  operated  by 
water-pressure  from  a  city  main,  or  by  tanks  in  the  top  of 
the  building.    A  great  many  have  recently  been  put  into 
the  houses  of  wealthy  residents  of  the  Back  Bay  region  in 
Boston,  as  well  as  in  Providence  and  New  York  city.  The 
huge  tower  at  the  Paris  Exposition  in  1878  contained  a 
single  piston  elevator,  a  tube  being  sunk  (as  usual)  to  a 
depth  equal  to  the  height  to  be  traversed  — in  this  case  two 
hundred  and  eighty-three  feet.    The  triple  wire  cables  were 
eight  inches  in  diameter.    The  upward  flight  of  the  great 
wingless  bird  was  performed  in  two  minutes.    A  passenger 
hydraulic  elevator  costs  about  twenty-five  hundred  dollars, 
and  one  for  freight  about  sixteen  hundred  dollars.    A  steam 
elevator  costs  (engine,  hoistway,  and  all)  between  five  thous- 
and and  seven  thousand  dollars. 

Passenger  elevators  travel  at  a  speed  of  from  one  hun- 
dred to  two  hundred  and  fifty  feet  a  minute.  The  total  dis- 
tance travelled  in  a  year  is  often  as  much  as  three  thousand 
miles.  Cars  lighted  by  gas  have  attached  to  them  long  rub- 
ber gas  tubes  which  rise  and  fall  with  the  car.    A  wire  sus- 


THE  YEKTICAL  EAILWAY 


153 


pended  in  the  same  manner  carries  the  electric  current  to 
the  annunciator  in  the  car.  Some  elevators  have  indexes 
which  show  one  waiting  to  ride  just  where  the  car  is  at  any 
given  moment.  There  are  also  registers  to  show  the  num- 
ber of  trips  made.  Many  elevator  engines  are  constructed 
on  the  principle  of  the  worm  and  worm  gear.  The  winding- 
drums  are  scored  to  prevent  friction  of  the  ropes  against 
each  other.  If  the  motive  power  is  supplied  by  a  stationary 
engine,  the  governing  rope  in  the  hands  of  the  operator 
shifts  the  belt  from  one  pulley  to  another  to  reverse  the 
movement  of  the  car;  in  case  the  motive  power  is  supplied 
by  a  reversible  steam-engine,  the  governing  rope  is  attached 
directly  to  the  valve  of  the  steam-chest.  The  counter- 
balance weights  attached  to  cars  save  expenditure  of  power 
on  the  part  of  the  engine. 

There  have  been  some  strange  experiments  in  the  way  of 
elevators.  One  of  the  most  curious  was  that  tried  in  the 
present  New  York  post-office  building.  Keference  is  had  to 
the  twelve  huge  telescopical  hydraulic  machines  in  use  for  a 
few  years  —  eight  of  them  to  handle  the  mails,  and  four  for 
passengers.  They  were  much  like  a  sliding  spy-glass,  with 
the  car  on  the  small  end.  The  three  polished  wrought-iron 
slides  worked  through  water-tight  stuffed  boxes.  By  means 
of  a  rope  passing  through  the  car,  water  was  admitted 
through  a  valve  to  the  lower  end  of  the  tubular  structure 
—  the  car  then  rose.  Descent  was  effected  by  permitting 
the  water  to  escape.  The  irremediable  defects  of  the 
machines  were,  first,  that  the  pressure  of  water  in  such  long 
tubes  was  continually  bursting  and  deranging  the  stuffed 
boxes ;  and  second,  heavy  loads  could  not  be  lifted  to  the  top 
of  the  building,  owing  to  diminished  pressure  in  the  small 


154   WOHDERS  AKD  CURIOSITIES  OP  THE  RAILWAY. 

upper  tube.  These  structures  are  now  supplanted  by  the 
machines  of  Otis  Brothers,  of  New  York  city.* 

It  is  an  instinct  of  men  to  feel  a  peculiar  horror  about 
falling  from  a  great  height.  Perhaps  our  anthropoid  ances- 
tors were  troubled  by  falling  from  trees;  hence  our  night- 
mare dreams  of  falling  over  precipices  and  the  like,  inher- 
ited from  early  times.  As  to  elevator  accidents,  it  is  stated 
by  the  best  authority  that  only  one  man  in  all  New  England 
was  ever  killed  while  in  a  closed  passenger  car.  Every- 
where accidents  occur  through  people  heedlessly  falling  down 
elevator  wells,  or  by  persons  trying  to  climb  on  moving 
elevators,  or  by  their  putting  their  heads  where  they  have 
no  business  to  be.  A  negro  was  once  sent  upstairs  to  bring 
down  an  elevator;  he  found  its  door  locked.  In  trying  to 
climb  through  the  transom  into  the  car  he  took  hold  of  the 
guide-rope;  the  car  started;  when  people  came  upstairs, 
they  found  his  head  on  the  floor  of  the  car,  and  his  body  in 
the  hall  outside.  At  the  Mechanics'  Fair  in  Boston  in  1881 
an  elevator  boy  left  his  station  to  get  a  drink.  When  he 
returned  he  supposed  the  elevator  to  be  where  he  had  left 
it,  and  stepped  backward  into  the  well,  and  was  killed.  The 
only  instance  that  has  come  under  the  notice  of  the  writer 
of  these* lines  of  persons  being  killed  while  inside  a  falling 
car  is  the  case  of  the  accident  to  the  direct-acting  hydraulic 
elevator  in1  the  Grand  Hotel  in  Paris  some  three  or  four 
years  ago.  The  machine  had  very  heavy  counter-balance 
weights  to  overcome  a  very  heavy  piston.  But  somehow  the 
iron  plate  that  attached  the  car  to  the  piston  broke;  the  car 
flew  to  the  top  of  the  building,  breaking  the  counter-balance 

*  Since  the  above  was  written  hydraulic  elevators  have  become  quite  popu- 
lar in  New  York,  and  have  been  placed  in  many  of  the  large  buildings  recently 
erected  (1884), 


THE  VERTICAL  RAILWAY. 


155 


ropes,  and  then  fell  to  the  bottom,  killing  four  persons.  This 
is  an  exception.  Most  accidents  occur,  as  has  been  stated, 
through  carelessness;  yet  many  of  them  are  due  to  unpro- 
tected hatchways,  and  other  kinds  of  neglect  to  provide 
safety  apparatus.  The  law  obliges  owners  of  elevators  to 
protect  their  hoistways  by  hatches  and  railings  on  each  floor. 
But  too  often  there  is  laxity  in  these  matters  on  the  part  of 
inspectors  of  buildings. 

As  a  matter  of  fact,  however,  there  is  a  remarkably 
small  percentage  of  accidents  connected  with  the  vertical 
passenger  railway  —  not  one  tithe  of  those  occurring  on 
horizontal  steam  railways.  Most  elevator  accidents  occur 
in  connection  with  unsafe  and  flimsy  freight  elevators.  In 
one  year  there  were  in  Boston  only  sixteen  accidents  all  told, 
and  only  one  hundred  and  twenty-four  in  all  the  New  Eng- 
land States  in  the  same  time.  The  fact  is  that  there  are  in 
use  so  many  brakes,  extra  steel  ropes,  clutches,  automatic 
stops,  and  air-cushions  that  it  is  next  to  impossible  for  a' 
well  made  elevator  to  fall. 

Some  years  ago  a  Chicagoan  (Colonel  A.  C.  Ellithorpe) 
patented  some  improvements  on  Mr.  Albert  Betteley's  air- 
cushion,  such  as  an  air- valve,  rubber  apron,  etc.  On  the 
occasion  of  one  of  the  first  tests  of  the  colonel's  improved 
air-cushion,  namely,  at  the  Parker  House  in  Boston,  in  the 
year  1880,  a  serio-comic  fiasco  occurred,  which  came  un- 
pleasantly near  being  serious  alone.  All  things  being  in 
readiness  for  the  experiment,  eight  persons  walked  into  the 
car,  among  them  the  Boston  agent  of  the  air-cushion.  The 
ropes  were  cut;  the  elevator  fell  with  a  thunderous  rush 
and  roar  that  were  heard  a  block  away;  the  pressure  of  the 
compressed  air  sent  the  glass  of  the  doors  flying  into  the 
halls ;  the  dust  raised  obscured  the  sight ;  and  the  eight  men 


156    WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 

were  soon  "laid  out"  in  the  office,  one  of  them  being  also 
"  laid  up  "  for  some  two  months,  another  having  his  neck 
cut,  and  all  being  considerably  "shaken  up,"  to  say  the 
least.  The  trouble  was  that  the  air  reservoir  at  the  bottom 
had  not  been  excavated  deeply  enough,  and  no  provision  had 
been  made  for  the  partial  escape  of  the  air  by  means  of 
valve  or  wire  grating.  These  things  were  soon  remedied, 
both  at  the  Parker  House  and  elsewhere.  Many  hundred 
air-cushion  reservoirs  have  since  been  constructed  beneath 
elevators,  and  many  marvellous  tests  have  been  made,  almost 
all  others  being  as  conspicuously  successful  as  the  Parker 
House  experiment  was  conspicuously  a  failure.  At  the 
Chicago  Exposition  in  1880  the  ropes  of  a  car  weighing  two 
thousand  eight  hundred  pounds  were  cut,  a  number  of 
visitors  having  first  entered  it.  The  car  fell  one  hundred 
and  nine  feet;  the  passengers  walked  out  smiling,  and  the 
crowd  cheered  with  wild  enthusiasm.  In  other  experiments 
baskets  of  eggs  taken  into  the  car  were  unbroken,  and  per- 
sons held  in  their  hands  glasses  of  water,  not  a  drop  of 
which  was  spilled.  When  a  car  falls  on  such  occasions  as 
these  that  have  been  mentioned,  it  stops  somewhat  suddenly, 
although  gently,  when  it  reaches  the  air-cushion,  and  then 
settles  slowly  to  the  bottom  of  the  well. 

The  vertical  railway  has  made  a  great  change  in  the  ap- 
pearance of  our  great  cities.  Twenty  years  ago  they  presented 
an  outline  that  was  comparatively  flat  and  uninteresting. 
To-day  it  is  very  different.  The  towering  masses  of  their 
great  buildings  and  the  variety  of  their  architectural  forms 
give  to  their  contour  a  much  greater  interest,  and  impart  to 
it  a  high  degree  of  picturesqueness. 

To  the  real-estate  owner  the  vertical  railway  has  proved 
a  priceless  boon.    The  value  of  land  in  the  crowded  centres 


THE  VERTICAL  RAILWAY. 


157 


of  different  branches  of  commerce  lias  been  materially  en- 
hanced by  it.  In  order  to  derive  the  highest  available 
income  from  such  property  it  has  become  incumbent  on  the 
land  owner  to  build  as  far  up  toward  the  sky  as  brick  and 
mortar,  stone  and  iron  would  permit.  Without  the  vertical 
railway  this  would  have  been  impracticable,  in  a  business 
point  of  view.  As  it  is,  the  best  offices  are  those  that  are 
highest  up.  They  enjoy  light,  air  and  ventilation,  and  they 
are  reached  without  the  least  inconvenience  by  that  revolu- 
tionary but  now  indispensable  device,  the  vertical  railway. 


CHAPTER  X. 


THE  LIGHTNING-  HARNESSED  — TRAMWAYS. 
VERYBODY  is  watching  with  keen  curiosity  the  experi- 


*  ments  that  are  being  made  with  the  new  motor,  elec- 
tricity. It  seems  not  only  possible,  but  tolerably  certain,  that 
we  shall  not  only  harness  the  lightning  to  our  street-cars,  but 
make  it  run  our  lathes,  sewing-machines,  and  other  pieces 
of  light  machinery.  It  seems  probable,  too,  that  the  discov- 
ery of  so  delicate  and  conveniently  generated  a  motive-power 
will  have  the  effect  of  stimulating  the  invention  of  aero- 
nautical vehicles,  and  the  mapping  out  of  the  great  currents 
of  the  atmosphere.  In  short,  it  looks  as  though  electricity 
were  to  be  the  supplanter  of  steam  as  a  motor,  at  least  for 
many  kinds  of  work;  as  if  it  would  soon  be  brought  into 
the  house,  furnishing  every  man  his  own  motive  power  in  a 
convenient  place,  and  helping  on  the  cause  of  woman's 
independence  by  enabling  thousands  of  sewing  women  to 
work  in  their  own  homes,  while  a  little  wire  coming  in  at 
the  window,  and  a  small,  softly-purring  electric  motor 
together  furnish  their  light,  their  cheap  telephone,  their 
needed  power,  and  perhaps  their  heat.  Already  in  Europe  and 
America  have  boats,  velocipedes,  ploughs,  sewing-machines, 
lathes,  saw-mills,  elevators,  printing  presses,  machine  shops, 
pumps,  hammers,  electroplaters,  rock  borers,  town  water 
works,  cranes,  clothing-house  cutting  machines,  dairies,  rib- 
bon-sawing and  wire- weaving  machines,  etc.,  been  operated 
by  electric  motors  (see  Du  Moncel,  "Electricity  as  a  Motive 


THE  LIGHTKING  HARNESSED. 


159 


Power,"  and  accounts  of  the  experiments  of  M.  Marcel 
Deprez,  in  the  London  "  Electric  Review,"  for  April  and  May 
1884),  and  inventors  keep  devising  new  applications  and 
perfecting  the  old  ones.  It  would  not  be  at  all  surprising  if 
people  now  living  should  see  the  day  when  trains  of  flying 
cars  propelled  by  electricity,  shall  ply  between  New  York 
and  London,  between  London  and  Yokohama,  and  between 
Yokohama  and  New  York  via  San  Francisco,  and  when  "air 
lines"  in  the  strict  sense  of  the  word  shall  be  established  in 
ten  thousand  directions  over  the  surface  of  every  country 
on  the  globe.  The  first  electric  air  ship  has  already  mounted 
into  the  atmosphere.  On  October  8,  1883,  Gaston  Tissan- 
dier  and  his  brother  made  an  ascension  from  Paris  in  their 
electric  car.  The  balloon  was  ellipsoidal  in  shape,  the  car 
made  of  stout  pieces  of  bamboo  lashed  together  and  fur- 
nished with  a  propeller,  rudder,  batteries,  etc.  The  aero- 
nauts say  that  they  proved  the  possibility  of  directing  their 
course  at  will  by  means  of  their  rudder,  operated  by  elec- 
tric power.  (See  illustrated  article  in  "  Science  "  for  Feb- 
ruary 8  and  15,  1884.) 

In  the  meantime,  pending  his  more  perfect  installation  as 
a  navigator  of  the  air,  the  proud  genie  of  the  clouds  has  been 
performing  some  very  useful  and  humble  labor  upon  a 
number  of  electrical  railways  in  Europe  and  America. 
Professor  Werner  Siemens,  of  Berlin,  will  be  known  in  the 
future  as  the  father  of  the  electric  railway  system,  if  there 
should  ever  be  such  a  system;  for  his  electric  railways  have 
not  only  been  the  first  successful  roads  of  the  kind,  but  his 
experiments  have  fully  proved  their  economic  and  dynamic 
practicability. 

Professor  0.  G.  Page,  however,  of  Washington,  District 
of  Columbia,  was  the  first  to  apply  electricity  to  the  rail- 


160    WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 

road,  having  received  from  Congress  an  appropriation  of 
twenty  thousand  dollars  for  his  experiments.  In  1860  he 
drew  a  car-load  of  passengers  through  the  streets  of  Wash- 
ington with  an  electric  locomotive  travelling  at  the  rate  of 
twenty  miles  an  hour;  the  electricity  was  generated  by 
zinc  and  carbon  batteries  carried  in  the  engine.  The  places 
.of  the  steam  cylinders  of  the  locomotive  were  occupied  by 
helices.  But  the  production  of  the  motive  power  was  found 
to  be  too  expensive  at  that  time,  and  the  experiment  was 
not  repeated. 

The  next  move  was  by  Siemens  and  Halske,  of  Berlin. 
In  the  year  1879  they  operated  at  the  Berlin  Exhibition  a 
small  electric  railway,  about  five  hundred  metres  in  length. 
The  seats  of  the  passenger  cars  were  arranged  back  to  back, 
settee  fashion.  An  auxiliary  conductor  of  the  electric  fluid 
was  placed  between  the  rails,  and  the  current,  passing  along 
this  from  the  dynamo,  was  taken  up  by  a  metal  brush  on 
the  car,  and,  after  passing  through  the  motor,  returned  by 
way  of  the  rails  to  the  dynamo  again.  The  locomotive  used 
was  but  a  tiny  affair.  There  were  two  or  three  more  of 
these  pleasure,  or  model,  roads  built  in  Germany  during 
1879  and  1880.  The  powerful  current  in  the  rails  was 
somewhat  dangerous.  '  Once  when  a  horse  was  crossing  the 
track  of  the  Berlin  road  he  struck  one  of  the  rails  with  his 
iron  shoe,  and  received  a  severe  shock.  The  repairing  of 
the  rails  also  interrupted  the  current.  To  remedy  this, 
Professor  Siemens,  afterward,  at  Paris  and  in  other  places, 
placed  a  metallic  cable  on  each  side  of  the  track,  and  con- 
nected them  with  the  moving  train  in  such  a  way  that 
whatever  might  be  doing  on  the  road,  the  electric  circuit 
would  always  be  maintained.  For  instance,  in  the  case  of 
the  Charlottenburg  and  Spandau  electric  railroad,  built  in 


THE  LIGHTNING  HARNESSED. 


161 


1881,  the  conducting  wires  were  elevated  on  posts  beside 
the  track;  little  trollys,  or  contact  carriages,  ran  along  the 
wires  in  the  air,  being  themselves  connected  by  wire  with 
the  motor  in  the  car,  and  following  where  the  car  led  the 
way. 

The  first  electric  railway  for  actual  business  traffic  was 
constructed  by  Siemens  and  Halske  in  1881,  between  Licht- 
erfelde  and  the  Military  College,  Berlin.  The  Siemens  cars 
used  here,  and  at  the  Paris  Exhibition  in  the  same  year,  are 
very  different  from  those  of  the  road  of  1879,  being  in  size 
and  general  resemblance  quite  like  the  ordinary  European 
tram-car,  each  car  having  its  own  motor  under  the  floor, 
and  no  locomotive  being  required.  At  the  Paris  Exhibition, 
just  alluded  to,  the  Siemens  Electric  railway  extended  from 
the  Place  de  la  Concorde  to  the  interior  of  the  Palais  de 
Tlndustrie.  One  day  a  great  uproar  was  heard  in  the  Palais, 
and  it  was  soon  discovered  that  the  electric  car  had  broken 
loose,  and  that  the  attendants  were  trying  to  stop  it  by 
throwing  ties  and  other  obstructions  in  its  way.  But  over 
them  all  it  went  hopping  and  bouncing  until  it  brought  up 
in  the  ticket- office.  As  it  struck  the  wall  the  conductor 
snapped,  and  a  flash  of  lightning  lit  up  the  scene. 

In  1882  Professor  Siemens  patented  an  electrical  road- 
car,  intended  for  use  in  places  not  rich  enough  to  build  a 
railway.  The  driver  sits  in  front  of  this  car  and  steers  it 
by  turning  a  wheel  like  that  of  a  ship.  The  coach  is  stopped 
by  simple  pressure  on  a  lever. 

There  are,  in  all,  some  seven  or  eight  electric  railroads 

in  Europe  at  the  date  of  this  writing.    That  in  use  in  the 

royal  coal  mines  near  Zanckerode,  Saxony,  hauls  eighty 

tons  of  coal  at  a  speed  of  about  seven  miles  an  hour;  fancy 

a  horse  attempting  to  do  as  much !    The  Zanckerode  loco- 
11 


162    WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 


motive  receives  its  current  from  an  overhead  conductor. 
It  is  needless  to  say  that  for  mines  the  electric  motor  is  of 
peculiar  value,  being  capable  of  service  where  the  steam 
and  smoke  and  noise  of  an  ordinary  locomotive  would  be 
intolerable. 

One  of  the  most  recent  of  the  electric  railroads  is  that  con- 
structed by  Messrs.  Siemens,  between  Port  Bush,  the  termi- 
nus of  the  Belfast  and  Northern  Counties  railroad,  and  Bush 
Mills,  near  the  Giant's  Causeway.  It  is  six  miles  long;  the 
power  is  taken  from  a  neighboring  waterfall  by  means  of 
a  simple  turbine  wheel,  and  the  profits  of  the  road  come 
from  visitors  to  the  Causeway. 

The  experiments  of  Professor  Siemens  have  been  followed 
in  America  by  similar  but  independent  ones,  on  the  part  of 
Mr.  Thomas  A.  Edison,  the  inventor.  His  first  electric  road 
was  that  from  his  laboratory  at  Menlo  Park,  New  Jersey, 
to  Plainfield,  a  distance  of  three  miles,  the  farmers  giving 
him  right  of  way  over  their  land.  His  first  electrical  loco- 
motive resembled  a  large  hand-car,  and  attained  the  speed 
of  forty-two  miles  an  hour.  In  February,  1882,  an  electri- 
cal passenger  locomotive  was  built  at  the  Edison  Machine 
works  in  New  York  city.  It  is  nine  feet  in  height  and  fif- 
teen feet  long,  and  somewhat  resembles,  in  appearance,  the 
ordinarv  steam  locomotive.  There  is,  of  course,  no  smoke- 
stack,  the  place  ordinarily  filled  by  that  object  being,  in 
the  electric .  engine,  devoted  to  the  head-light.  This  loco- 
motive drew  cars  at  a  high  rate  of  speed,  at  Menlo 
Park.  The  method  of  its  working  was,  in  general  terms, 
as  follows:  the  electricity  was  taken  up  from  the  track 
by  the  wheels  of  the  locomotive,  conveyed  thence  by  metal 
brushes  to  conductors  leading  into  the  cab  where  the 
engineer  stood  and  worked  his  levers.    From  the  cab  the 


164   WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 

current  returned  to  other  magnetized  brushes  placed  near 
and  on  either  side  of  an  armature  in  the  forward  part  of 
the  locomotive.  Now  the  armature  tvas  fixed  on  an  axle, 
and  when  the  magnetized  brushes  on  one  side  attracted  it, 
it  had  to  revolve  in  that  direction;  when  the  brushes  on  the 
other  side  attracted  it,  it  reversed  its  movement,  thus  pro- 
ducing forward  and  backward  motion  of  the  wheels  of 
the  locomotive.  The  electricity  was  generated  in  the 
laboratory  of  Mr.  Edison,  and  was  fed  to  the  track  by 
wires.  Edison  in  the  fall  of  1883  was  operating  an  electrical 
railway,  two  and  a  half  miles  long,  from  a  point  on  the 
Pennsylvania  railroad  to  Metuchen.  The  locomotive  can 
draw  a  passenger  car  containing  forty  people,  at  the  rate  of 
twenty- nine  miles  an  hour.  The  freight  train  carries  thirty 
tons,  at  the  rate  of  eight  miles  an  hour.  Since  the  dynamo- 
electrical  machine  is  an  absorber  as  well  as  a  developer  of 
electricity,  the  plan  of  Edison  contemplates  the  establish- 
ment of  stations  at  intervals  of  ten  miles,  where  dynamo- 
electrical  machines  may  be  placed,  to  communicate  their 
stored-up  energy  to  the  rails,  and  thence  to  the  apparatus 
in  the  locomotive. 

The  electrical  railway  at  the  Chicago  Exposition  has 
been  referred  to  on  page  75.  The  train  on  this  road 
was  moved  at  will,  in  either  direction,  and  was  per- 
fectly under  control.  It  carried,  in  all,  twenty-six  thousand 
eight  hundred  and  five  passengers.  The  auxiliary  conductor 
was,  in  this  case,  laid  in  a  trough  between  the  rails  (the 
patented  invention  of  Edison  and  Melds). 

Another  of  these  electro-motive  roads  is  now  in  oper- 
ation at  Greenville,  New  Jersey;  it  is  one-eighth  of  a  mile 
long.  The  experiments  are  under  the  direction  of  Mr.  Leo 
Daft. 


THE  LIGHTKIHG  HAEKESSED. 


165 


In  the  fall  of  1883,  a  Daft  electric  locomotive,  called  the 
"  Ampere,"  was  in  practical  use  on  the  Saratoga,  Mt. 
McGregor  and  Lake  George  railroad  —  a  line  seven  miles 
in  length,  extending  from  Saratoga  up  Mt.  McGregor,  at 
a  gradient  of  ninety-three  feet  in  a  mile.  This  was  the  first 
utilization  of  an  electric  locomotive  in  the  drawing  of  ordi- 
nary passenger  coaches  for  practical  and  public  purposes. 
The  experiment  was  a  complete  success  —  the  little  engine 
moving  off  easily  with  its  load  of  seventy  passengers,  amid 
the  loud  cheers  of  the  crowd,  whose  scepticism  as  to  the 
abilities  of  the  motor  was  completely  removed.  The  re- 
cently formed  Massachusetts  Electric  Power  Company  has 
also  successfully  tried  a  Daft  electric  locomotive  upon  a 
railroad  near  Boston,  and  proposes  to  introduce  the  power 
on  an  extensive  scale.  In  Mr.  Daft's  "  low  tension"  system 
the  danger  to  man  and  beast  from  contact  with  the  electri- 
fied rails  is  entirely  obviated.  When  the  rails  are  charged 
with  a  current  strong  enough  to  move  a  whole  train  of  cars, 
the  ends  of  copper  wires  attached  to  the  positive  and  nega- 
tive rail  can  be  placed  against  the  tongue  and  scarcely  a 
tremor  is  felt.  The  current  in  the  rails  of  the  Daft  road,  as 
in  those  of  all  other  electric  railroads,  admits  of  cars  passing 
in  either  direction,  indifferently,  over  the  same  track.  The 
Daft  motors  have  attained  a  speed  of  seventy  miles  an 
hour,  and  have  ascended  grades  of  two  thousand  feet  to  the 
mile.  As  the  author  has  elsewhere  stated,  one  of  the 
curious  things  discovered  by  Mr.  Daft  is  that  the  electric 
current  itself  exerts  a  tractive  or  adhesive  power,  making 
the  wheels  bite  the  rails  more  firmly.  But  a  more  wonder- 
ful thing  still  is  the  way  in  which  the  adhesive  power  of  the 
wheel  is  increased  by  electro-magnets.  Placed  beneath  the 
car  are  one  or  more  powerful  magnets,  which  are  not 


166    WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 

ordinarily  in  use;  but  whenever  the  motoneer  (or  engineer) 
wishes  to  climb  a  steep  grade,  he  turns  a  lever  and  switches 
off  a  part  of  his  current  into  these  extra  magnets.  They  at 
once  exert  a  tremendous  pull  downward  upon  the  rail,  and 
thus  bind  it  and  the  wheels  closely  together,  so  that  the 
adhesive  power  of  a  ten-ton  electric  locomotive  is  greater 
than  that  of  a  forty-ton  steam  locomotive,  and  most  of  the 
wear  and  tear  is  avoided.* 

Almost  all  the  electric  railways  at  present  employ  sta- 
tionary steam-engines  for  supplying  the  mechanical  power 
operating  their  dynamo-electric  friction  machines,  or  elec- 
tric current  generators.  It  is  certain  that  the  problem 
of  thus  converting  the  latent  energy  of  coal  into  elec- 
tricity has  been  successfully  solved  in  an  economic  point  of 
view  (the  economics  of  the  railway,  that  is  to  say),  for  it 
has  been  shown,  again  and  again,  that  the  cost  of  burning 
coal  under  the  boiler  of  a  locomotive  is  one-third  greater 
than  burning  it  under  the  boiler  of  a  stationary  engine  and 
converting  it  into  an  electric  current.  (See  "The  Elec- 
tric Keview,"  for  February  28,  1884,  and  "  The  New  York 
Tribune,"  for  February  25,  1884.)  So  also  in  other  indus- 
tries, the  saving  in  insurance  rates,  heat,  dirt,  noise,  danger, 
loss  of  space,  salary  of  licensed  engineer,  and  cost  of  engines 
and  boilers  will  be  so  great  by  the  employment  of  electro- 
motors, and  the  economy  of  distribution  by  wires  from 
central  stations  so  considerable,  that  it  really  looks  as  if  the 
hour  of  doom  had  struck  for  steam,  or,  at  any  rate,  that  its 
uses  will  be  more  limited. 

In  London,  several  new  electric  railways  are  in  process  of 
construction.    One  of  these  is  to  extend  under  the  Thames 

*See  an  account  of  the  Daft  experiments  in  Ck  Harper's  Weekly,'1  for  Sep- 
tember 22,  1883. 


168    WONDERS  AJSTD  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 

through  a  new  tunnel,  from  Charing  Cross  station  to 
Waterloo  station.  Messrs.  Siemens  Brothers  are  the  con- 
tractors for  this  railway. 

Various  companies  are  being  formed  in  the  United  States 
for  the  introduction  of  electric  motors  upon  horse  railroads 
and  elevated  railroads.    A  company  has  also  been  formed 
in  Paris  for  the  introduction  of  electro-motors  on  tramways. 
On  September  6,  1883,  an  ordinary  horse-car  was  propelled 
by  the  Faure-Sellon-Volckmar  accumulators  of  the  French 
company  for  a  distance  of  thirty  miles  through  the  principal 
thoroughfares  of  Paris,  and  during  the  trial  of  six  hours  no 
accident  occurred  through  the  frightening  of  horses.  Indeed, 
their  freedom  from  noise,  dust,  and  sparks,  is  one  of  the 
chief  attractions  of  these  novel  motors.    They  are  also  rec- 
ommended by  their  cheapness.    For  elevated  city  tramways 
they  have  the  advantage  of  being  free  from  smoke  and  cin- 
ders.   If  run  upon  longer  railroads,  the  fact  that  each  car 
contains  its  own  motor  would,  perhaps,  make  the  use  of  single 
passenger  cars  advisable,  so  that  our  trunk  lines  and  local 
lines  would  resemble  street-car  roads;  in  such  event,  the 
results  of  collision,  as  has  been  suggested,  would  not  be  so  dis- 
astrous as  at  present,  and  the  wear  and  tear  of  rails  would 
be  less.    "  Travelling  at  the  present  time,"  says  Lieutenant 
Bradley  A.  Fiske,  "  is  a  very  luxurious  thing.    But  what  will 
it  be  when  we  can  sit  at  an  open  window  and  glide  along 
at  the  rate  of  sixty  miles  an  hour,  without  the  fear  of  smoke 
or  cinders;  when  electric  bells  are  at  hand  leading  to  the 
inaccessible  retreats  where  porters  now  secrete  themselves 
safe  from  discovery;  when  we  can  start  from  our  homes  to 
take  a  car  for  Boston,  as  we  now  start  to  take  an  elevated 
train,  knowing  that  if  we  miss  one  car,  another  will  soon  be 
at  hand;  when  electric  incandescent  lamps,  which  cannot,  in 


TRAMWAYS. 


169 


case  of  accident,  scatter  burning  oil  in  all  directions,  shall 
fill  the  car  with  a  mild  and  steady  light;  when  despatches 
can  be  received  on  board  a  train  in  motion  as  well  as  at  an 
office;  when  the  cars  shall  be  heated  and  meals  prepared  by 
electric  stoves,  which  cannot,  in  case  of  accident,  set  fire  to 
the  car  —  all  the  electricity  needed  for  these  and  number- 
less other  purposes  being  derived  from  the  same  convenient 
source  —  the  conductor  carrying  the  current  which  fur- 
nishes the  propelling  power  ?  "  * 

From  electrical  tramways  for  cities,  we  may  pass  to  a  con- 
sideration of  other  kinds  of  city  passenger  railways.f  The 


(By  courtesy  of  Mr.  John  Stephenson,  New  York.) 


THE  FIRST  STREET  CAR  IN  THE  WORLD. 

first  street  railway  in  the  world  was  the  New  York  and  Har- 
lem, incorporated  1831.    The  first  cars  were  run  in  Novem- 

*  "Popular  Science  Monthly,"  April,  1884. 

t  The  authorities  that  have  been  consulted  for  this,  the  first  full,  account  of 
the  origin  of  city  street  railways,  are  D.  K.  Clark's  work  on  "Tramways,"  Lon- 
don, Crosby,  Lockwood  and  Company,  1878,  and  supplementary  volume  to 
same,  1882;  F.  Serafon's  "Etude  sur  les  Chemins  de  Fer,"  etc.,  Paris,  Dunod, 
1872;  Martha  Lamb's  "History  of  New  York,"  II,  721;  London  " Times,"  Au- 
gust 31,  1860;  "First  Street  Railway  Banquet  in  the  Old  World,"  by  George 
Francis  Train,  Liverpool,  Lee,  Nightingale  and  Company,  1860;  W.  H. 
Brown's  "History  of  the  First  Locomotives  in  America"  ;  and  various  miscella- 
neous journals,  old  guide  books,  and  old  gentlemen. 


170    WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 

ber,  1832,  from  Prince  street  to  Harlem  Bridge.  These  cars 
were  curious  structures,  from  the  point  of  view  of  people 
of  this  generation  —  being  very  much  like  the  stage  coaches 
of  the  time,  each  having  three  compartments  with  side 
doors;  there  were  leather  springs,  and  the  driver  sat  on  an 
elevated  seat  in  front,  and  moved  the  brake  with  his  foot. 
The  car  represented  in  the  cut  was  one  of  the  first  two  that 
were  built  for  the  Harlem  line,  and  was  made  by  John 
Stephenson.  The  opening  of  the  road,  says  W.  H.  Brown, 
excited  a  good  deal  of  interest,  and  the  streets  along  the 
route  were  crowded  with  curious  spectators.  The  bright 
new  car,  the  "  John  Mason,"  led  the  way,  and  the  ribbons 
were  handled  in  gallant  style  by  a  well  known  knight  of 
the  whip,  named  Lank  O'Dell,  who  always  drove  a  pair  of 
gray  horses.  Both  the  cars  that  figured  on  the  occasion 
contained  city  officials  (the  mayor  and  members  of  the  city 
council)  and  invited  guests.  It  was  thought  by  many  that 
there  would  be  great  difficulty  in  stopping  the  cars  quickly 
enough  to  avoid  accidents  to  street  vehicles.  But  the  vice- 
president  of  the  road,  being  very  desirous  of  convincing 
people  how  ungrounded  were  their  fears  in  this  regard,  de- 
termined to  give  them  ocular  proof  of  the  ease  with  which 
the  cars  could  be  brought  to  a  dead  stop.  So  on  the  trial 
day,  he  posted  himself  with  a  number  of  witnesses  some- 
where about  the  corner  of  the  Bowery  and  Bond  street, 
having  previously  ordered  the  drivers  of  the  two  cars  to 
watch  for  his  signal,  and  then  stop  the  cars  with  all  the 
haste  they  could.  Now,  when  O'Dell  came  dashing  along, 
and  saw  the  signal,  he  easily  brought  up  the  car,  since  he 
had  previously  had  some  experience  in  hauling  materials 
for  the  road;  but  the  hackman  who  drove  the  second  car, 
forgetting  the  lever  of  the  brake,  only  drew  hard  on  his 


TEAMWAYS. 


171 


lines  and  shouted,  "  Whoa!  "  But  in  vain;  his  car  slid  in- 
exorably forward,  and  the  tongue  went  crashing  through 
the  rear  end  of  the  "  John  Mason,"  causing  the  dignified  in- 
mates to  beat  an  unceremonious  retreat,  amid  the  laughter 
of  the  bystanders.  No  one  was  hurt,  however,  and  soon 
the  triumphal  train  moved  on  to  Harlem  Bridge.  This  is 
the  first  street-car  collision  on  record,  and  it  occasioned  a 
good  deal  of  merriment  among  the  citizens,  and  consider- 
able annoyance  to  the  vice-president;  since  for  several  days 
afterward,  the  roguishly  inclined  among  his  friends  would 
imitate  his  attitude  and  gesture  on  that  unlucky  street- 
corner,  and  raise  their  arms  for  him  to  stop,  as  he  had  done 
to  the  car-drivers.  The  fares  were  paid  in  silver  sixpences 
of  the  old  Spanish  currency  then  in  circulation.  In  1837 
the  road  temporarily  succumbed  to  steam  cars,  but  resumed 
work  in  1845.  The  old  Harlem  Railroad  Corporation 
still  owns  the  right  of  way  through  the  Bowery  and  Fourth 
avenue,  and  receives  a  large  income  from  the  street  rail- 
road, as  well  as  from  the  Hudson  River  and  the  New  Haven 
railroads,  in  return  for  a  cession  to  them  of  right  of  way. 

The  early  street  railways  of  New  York  were  not  very 
popular  at  first,  and  were  for  a  time  disused.  Much  of  their 
unpopularity  was  doubtless  due  to  the  objectionable  nature 
of  the  rail  employed;  it  projected  too  much  above  the  sur- 
face, and  was  injurious  to  street  vehicles.  The  first  rails 
were  made  with  grooves,  or  iron  gutters,  to  guide  the 
wheels.  The  low  step-rail,  now  everywhere  in  vogue,  was 
invented  and  first  used  in  Philadelphia  in  1855.  In  New 
York  the  street  railway  was  revived  about  1852,  by  M. 
Loubat,  a  French  engineer,  who  constructed  the  Sixth 
Avenue  railway  in  that  year.  At  nearly  the  same  date 
the  Second,  Third,  and  Eighth  avenue  lines  received  their 


172    WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 

charters.  In  1853  the  Cambridge  (Massachusetts)  horse 
railroad  was  chartered,  and  the  Metropolitan  of  Boston  at 
about  the  same  time  (Charles  L.  Light,  engineer).  The 
first  car  was  run  out  of  Boston  on  the  Cambridge  road,  in 
April,  1856.  By  the  year  1858  horse  railroads  were  in 
use  in  all  the  large  cities  of  the  United  States. 

When  M.  Loubat  returned  to  Paris  in  1853,  he  at  once 
introduced  the  new  American  street  car  to  his  fellow  Paris- 
ians, laying  a  line  along  the  Avenue  de  la  Eeine.  The 
French  at  first  called  the  new  roads  chemins  de  fer  Ameri- 
cains,  or,  for  short,  VAmericain;  now  they  call  them  "tram- 
ways." 

In  1860  that  eccentric  character,  George  Francis  Train, 
introduced  the  American  street-car  into  England,  the  first 
line  opened  by  him  being  in  Birkenhead,  opposite  Liverpool. 
The  cars  were  built  by  the  Stephenson  firm  in  America. 
The  line  ran  from  Woodside  Ferry  to  the  entrance  of  Birk- 
enhead Park,  a  distance  of  one  mile  and  a  quarter.  The 
cars  seated  twenty-four  passengers  inside,  and  the  same, 
number  on  the  railed-in  top.  In  his  curious  pamphlet  on 
the  celebration  of  the  opening  of  the  road  (August  30, 
1860),  Mr.  Train  gives  an  illustration  of  one  of  the  cars,  by 
which  you  perceive  that  there  were  queer-looking  conical 
brooms  hanging  downward  in  front  of  each  wheel,  to 
sweep  obstructions  from  the  track.  Mr.  Train  gave  a 
grand  dejeuner  on  the  opening  day;  the  invitation  cards 
were  exquisitely  lithographed  in  gold  and  colors,  and  were 
sent  by  him  to  all  the  crowned  heads  of  Europe,  and  to  all  the 
eminent  people  of  Great  Britain!  In  1861  Mr.  Train  opened 
a  street-car  railway  in  Bayswater,  London,  after  encounter- 
ing very  determined  opposition.  It  was  argued  by  the 
London  city  officials  that  the  rails  would  tear  off  the  wheels 


TEAMWAYS. 


173 


of  vehicles,  and  that  it  would  be  impossible  to  repair  the 
streets  without  interrupting  traffic  on  the  tramways.  But 
the  street-car  is  now  very  popular  in  England,  as  it  is  also 
in  nearly  all  other  countries  of  the  world.  There  are  street- 
cars, e.g.,  in  Moscow,  Leipzig,  Naples,  Oporto,  New  Zealand, 
Bombay,  Java,  Australia,  India,  Japan,  the  Cape  of  Good 
Hope,  Chili,  Peru  and  Buenos  Ayres.  The  last-named  city 
had,  in  1872,  seventy  miles  of  street  railways.  It  was  at  one 
time  the  custom  in  Buenos  Ayres  for  trumpeters  to  ride  in 
advance  of  the  street-cars  in  order  to  warn  off  other  vehicles 
and  prevent  collisions.  Sydney,  in  Australia,  has  forty  miles 
of  street-car  tracks,  and  the  motive  power  is  steam.  Steam 
and  compressed  air  are  used  as  street-car  motors  in  several 
cities  in  the  world;  but  they  have  not  yet  come  into  general 
use,  owing  chiefly  to  the  difficulty  of  keeping  the  low  rails 
used  in  crowded  thoroughfares  clear  of  ice  and  snow  and 
the  greasy  slush  of  the  street;  for  a  locomotive  wheel  only 
spins  around  on  a  slippery  track.*  The  best  street  locomo- 
tives are  made  by  Merryweather,  in  England.  As  is  well 
known,  there  are  several  railways  in  Chicago  and  San  Fran- 
cisco which  are  operated  by  continuous  cables  and  stationary 
steam  engines.  The  cables  are  some  eight  inches  under- 
ground, and  when  it  is  desired  to  propel  a  car  the  conductor 
lets  down  through  a  narrow  continuous  slot  a  kind  of 
"grip"  that  seizes  fast  on  the  moving  cable,  and  the  car 
is  drawn  along  at  a  uniform  rate  of  speed.  The  cable  rail- 
road on  the  New  York  and  Brooklyn  bridge  is  a  novel  affair, 
exciting  as  much  of  curiosity  as  the  vast  Karnak  bridge 

*Mr.  Daft's  device  of  the  electro-magnets  alluded  to  in  this  chapter  would 
seem  to  offer  the  very  means  needed  for  keeping  the  wheels  firmly  to  a  track 
charged  with  his  low-tension  current.  The  current  of  one  hundred  and  fifty 
volts  is  perfectly  harmless  to  man  and  beast;  a  tension  of  from  three  hundred 
to  twenty- two  thousand  volts  is  dangerous,  but  that  of  one  hundred  and  fifty 
only  causes  a  pleasant  tingling  in  the  nerves. 


174    WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OE  THE  RAILWAY. 


itself  does  of  wonder.  The  continuous  cable  runs  in  the 
form  of  an  oval,  travelling  rapidly  over  large  pulleys.  The 
grip  used  is  what  is  called  a  rolling-grip  (the  invention  of 
Colonel  William  H.  Paine)  and  consists  of  four  horizontally- 
placed  grooved  wheels  and  other  mechanism,  all  located 
under  the  centre  of  the  car.  When  the  brakeman  turns 
his  brake- wheel,  the  grip  wheels  under  the  car  begin  to 
revolve  in  the  same  direction  that  the  cable  moves,  and  at 
the  same  time  they  begin  to  hug  the  cable  tight  enough  to 
draw  along  the  car.  When  the  revolutions  of  the  car- 
wheels  proper  reach  a  speed  equal  to*  that  of  the  moving 
cable  the  grip-wheels  no  longer  revolve,  but  are  fastened 
tight  to  the  cable  by  the  brakeman's  wheel-and-lever  appar- 
atus, thus  drawing  the  car  up  the  incline  of  the  bridge. 
By  a  system  of  switches  at  each  end  of  the  bridge,  the  cars 
are  kept  moving  round,  passing  over  on  one  side,  and  then 
(switching  and  reversing  the  direction)  back  on  the  other 
side.  At  the  date  of  this  writing  a  double  cable  road  is 
constructing  in  New  York  city,  from  One  Hundred  and 
Twenty-Fifth  to  One  Hundred  and  Eighty-Seventh  streets, 
a  distance  of  about  three  and  a  half  miles  along  the  Hudson 
Eiver,  beyond  Central  Park. 

When  rapid  transit  is  desired  in  great  cities,  only  two 
methods  of  attaining  it  are  possible:  you  must  either  have 
a  railroad  underground,  or  a  railroad  in  the  air.  New 
York  has  found  the  elevated  railroad  successful,  and  at  the 
present  time  the  four  double-track  lines  of  the  Manhattan 
Elevated  Railroad  Company  serve  for  the  passage  of  three 
thousand  five  hundred  trains  a  day,  and  the  transportation 
of  eighty-six  million  passengers  in  a  year  —  some  three 
hundred  thousand  a  day. 

In  London  high  brick  viaducts  are  used  by  some  of  the 


TEAMWAYS. 


175 


trunk-lines  entering  the  city.  The  London  and  Greenwich 
Company's  viaduct  is  fifty-three  miles  long,  has  one  thou- 
sand arches,  and  cost  one  million  three  hundred  thousand 
dollars  ^per  mile;  it  has  not  proved  a  paying  investment 
The  viaduct  plan  has  recently  been  tried  in  America  by 
the  Pennsylvania  railroad,  which  has  constructed  a  brick 
viaduct  of  considerable  length,  to  enable  cars  to  penetrate 
to  its  grand  new  terminal  station  in  the  heart  of  Philadel- 
phia.* 

The  New  York  elevated  roads  are  designed  only  for  pas- 
sengers, and  the  light  trains  therefore  run  with  complete 
safety  upon  the  branched  iron  pillars  that  support  the  track. 
Up  to  1882  not  a  single  passenger  had  been  injured  through 
the  fault  of  the  elevated  railroad  company.  The  origin  of 
the  road  was  in  1866.  In  1867  the  Legislature  of  New 
York  accepted  the  plans  of  Charles  T.  Harvey  out  of  over 
forty  others  that  were  presented  to  it.  The  inventor  was 
allowed  to  erect  an  illustrative  section  of  his  road  from 
the  Battery  through  Greenwich  street  to  Twenty-Ninth 
street,  and  if  the  road  proved  satisfactory  to  the  Governor 
and  his  commission,  the  inventor  was  to  be  allowed  to 
extend  it  to  Harlem  Eiver;  if  it  did  not  prove  so,  it  must 
come  down,  and  to  cover  damages  that  might  result  to  prop- 
erty, Harvey  was  obliged  to  file  a  penal  bond  of  one  million 
dollars  with  the  city  comptroller.  The  road  was  built, 
however,  upon  these  severe  terms.  The  first  motive  power 
consisted  of  endless  wire  ropes  worked  by  stationary  engines. 
But  in  1870  the  company  failed,  and  was  supplanted  by  the 
New  York  Elevated  Railroad  Company,  which  put  small 
locomotives  on  the  tracks,  and  by  energetic  administration 

*  For  a  description  of  some  early  elevated  roads  compar'e  Chapter  III,  page 
32,  and  Chapter  VII,  pages  115,  116. 


176    WOHDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 

established  the  success  of  the  undertaking.  Most  of  the 
original  road  is  now  merged  in  the  roads  of  the  Manhattan 
Company. 

Nearly  everybody  disliked  the  overhead  railways  at  first. 
But  the  disagreeable  impressions  produced  are  soon  lessened 
by  familiarity,  and  the  roads  have  come  to  be  regarded  as  a 
necessary  evil,  even  by  most  of  their  worst  enemies.  The  key 
of  popular  opinion  is  struck  in  the  following  playful  words 
of  a  writer  in  the  "American  Architect"  (1883);  he  has 
been  exhausting  the  vocabulary  of  his  scorn  and  dislike  upon 
the  elevated  roads  for  their  damaging  effect  upon  certain 
noble  architecture  in  their  neighborhood,  yet  concludes  his 
remarks  thus:  "  But  let  us  shake  off  the  general  dustiness 
we  have  gathered  by  the  walk  along  the  substructure  of  the 
road,  forget  the  holes  burned  in  our  coats  by  hot  cinders, 
overlook  the  few-1  grease-splashes  upon  our  summer  hat,  and 
forgive  the  brakeman  who  found  amusement  in  squirting 
tobacco  juice  down  upon  us,  and  let  us  go  up  and  follow  the 
unthinking  populace  in  encouraging  the  monopoly.  Oh, 
how  delightful!  Bless  me,  here  we  are  at  old  Trinity 
again!  I  take  it  all  back;  let  architecture  and  property 
rights  and  personal  privileges  and  past  associations  perish, 
so  long  as  we  can  so  fly  through  the  air  without  following 
suit." 

Note.  —  Probably  the  most  richly  humorous  bit  of  elevated  rail- 
way literature  in  existence  is  to  be  found  in  the  "Report  of  the 
Select  Committee  of  the  House  of  Representatives  of  Massachusetts 
on  a  Rail  Way  from  Boston  to  Albany,  1827."  There  is  such  a  pro- 
vincial and  rural  smack  about  this  whole  report,  such  naive  igno- 
rance, and  such  a  school-boy  style  of  composition,  as  to  render  it 
immortally  funny  to  all  railroad  men  and  inventors.  Among  the 
pieces  of  knowledge  graciously  imparted  by  "your  committee  "to 
the  members  of  the  Legislature  is  a  description  of  "a  single  Rail 


TEAMWAYS.  177 

Way, "  invented  by  Colonel  Henry  Sargent,  of  Boston.  His  single  rail 
track,  according  to  the  Report,  was  to  be  elevated  upon  posts  about 
three  feet  above  the  common  road.  "  Sidelings  "  were  to  be  made  at 
suitable  intervals.  "  The  rims  of  the  wheel  are  to  be  made  concave 
to  keep  them  upon  the  rail.  The  carriage  has  two  bodies,  one  on 
each  side  of  the  rail,  and  extending  down  with  iron  braces  from  the 
wheels.  The  balance  and  weight  are  below  the  Rail."  So  far,  so 
good ;  we  have  here  a  road  bearing  a  general  resemblance  to  the  ele- 
vated railways  of  Mr.  Meigs  and  General  Le  Roy  Stone  (compare 
Chapter  VII,  ' '  Bicycle  Railways  " ).  But  study  carefully  what  is  said 
about  the  "  sidelings  " :  ' '  Your  committee  "  offer  the  following  objec- 
tions to  the  adoption  by  the  State  of  Colonel  Sargent's  invention : 
His  railway  "  would  incommode  the  passing  and  repassing  travel. 
Each  carriage  must  stop,  and  one  or  both  the  drivers  must  alight, 
and  open,  or  swing,  a  portion  of  the  Rail  from  the  direct  line  to  the 
sideling,  and  then  return  it  again,  like  a  gate,  to  its  place.  In 
returning,  the  same  process  must  be  repeated.  If  two  lines  should 
be  constructed,  the  one  for  the  going  and  the  other  for  the  returning 
travel,  still  the  same  inconvenience  would  occur  where  one  carriage 
was  to  move  faster  than  another.  They  must  both  stop  till  one 
passed  the  other  in  the  manner  before  mentioned.  A  single  Rail 
Way,  by  being  elevated  several  feet,  would  incommode  the  country 
like  a  fence  passing  through  the  villages,  and  like  a  gate  or  bar 
across  every  road  that  it  passed.  And  if  the  movable  portion  of  the 
rail  were  left  partly  open  at  any  time,  as  might  often  be  the  case,  the 
carriage  would  be  very  likely  to  run  off ,  an  accident  which  in  many 
cases  might  be  serious ;  besides  the  great  difficulty  there  would 
always  be  in  replacing  a  loaded  carriage  upon  an  elevated  Rail." 
12 


CHAPTER  XI. 


THE  FUNCTIONS  OF  THE  RAILWAY  IN  WAR. 

THE  functions  of  the  railway  in  time  of  war  are 
peculiar  and  delicate,  and  are  deserving  of  deeper 
study  on  the  part  of  statists  and  military  men  than  they 
have  yet  received.  The  through  railway  lines  of  a  country, 
with  their  telegraphic  wires,  may  be  regarded  as  so  many 
trunk-nerves,  overlapping  —  with  their  diverging  branches 
—  the  dividing  lines  of  the  different  states,  and  forming  a 
medium  of  communication  of  the  greatest  efficiency  in  time 
of  harmonious  cooperation.  Railroads  both  bind  and  sever. 
They  strengthen  a  democracy  like  that  of  the  United  States 
by  the  thorough  and  rapid  interchange  of  ideas  they  effect 
between  distant  and  differing  populations,  and  at  the  same 
time  they  lessen  the  danger  of  Caesarian  concentration  of 
armed  soldiers  on  distant  points,  owing  to  the  ease  with 
which  they  can  be  rendered  useless,*  but  for  the  same  reason 
they  afford  a  tempting  opportunity  for  the  almost  instant 
paralysis  of  the  business  of  the  country,  in  case  of  an 
uprising  of  the  disaffected  or  baser  elements  of  society. 
This  last  danger  is  a  grave  one.  Witness  the  ominous 
railroad  riots  of  1877.f 

*  Compare  the  causeways  of  ancient  Mexico,  and  the  ease  with  which  the 
army  of  Cortez  was  well-nigh  annihilated  by  the  cutting  of  these,  and  by  the' 
destruction  of  the  bridges  connecting  their  different  parts. 

+  The  great  railroad  strikes  and  riots  of  1BT7  lasted  from  the  middle  of  July 
to  the  first  of  August,  and  spread  over  fourteen  States,  in  all  of  which  there  was 
more  or  less  serious  stoppage  of  business  and  destruction  of  property  by 
armed  rioters.  United  States  Regulars  and  State  Militia  united  their  forces  in 
the  suppression  of  what  threatened  to  be  a  communistic  reign  of  terror,  but  not 

178 


THE  FUNCTIONS  OF  THE  RAILWAY  IN  WAR.  179 

In  formal  war,  too,  railroads  form  a  very  precarious 
reliance  when  they  are  within  reach  of  the  enemy.  In  July, 
1870,  a  few  Prussian  lancers  crossed  into  French  territory 
and  blew  up  a  viaduct  of  the  railway  by  which  communica- 
tion between  the  different  portions  of  the  French  army  was 
kept  up;  and,  as  a  consequence,  MacMahon  did  not  receive  at 
Worth  the  support  he  had  expected,  and  was  thereby  seriously 
crippled.  So  the  defeat  of  Bull  Run  was  due  to  a  brigade 
of  soldiers  brought  to  the  scene  of  action  from  the  Shenan- 
doah Valley  by  the  Manassas  railroad.  Colonel  Hamley,  in 
his  work  on  "  The  Operations  of  War,"  says  that  an  invader 
should  always  direct  his  attack  on  a  part  of  the  enemy's 
country  where  there  are  few  railways,  since  their  effect  is,  on 
the  whole,  in  favor  of  the  defender.  A  flank  movement  by 
rail  is  especially  dangerous,  if  the  enemy  can  reach  the 
road,  since  he  can  seriously  cripple  even  a  large  force  by 
attacking  small  sections  of  it  at  once  while  it  is  en  route. 

On  the  other  hand,  supply  railways  are  of  inestimable 
value  to  an  invading  force,  enabling  it  to  be  kept  in  close 
communication  with  provisions  and  munitions  of  war,  how- 
ever far  away  it  may  be  from  the  points  where  these  are 
stored.  Formerly,  it  was  necessary  for  an  army  to  remain 
stationary  for  a  time  while  depots  of  fresh  supplies  were 
being  formed  in  the  rear.  But  now  the  railway  keeps  even 
step  with  the  army  in  its  march,  and,  if  not  liable  to  inter- 
ruption by  the  enemy,  furnishes  ample  supplies  for  the  daily 

before  serious  damage  had  been  done,  the  Pennsylvania  railroad  alone  losing 
about  five  million  dollars  by  the  riots  at  Pittsburgh.  The  four  great  trunk  lines 
from  the  Atlantic  seaboard  to  the  West  were  for  several  days  in  the  power  of 
the  strikers,  and  scenes  of  violence  were  enacted  in  many  of  the  Western 
States,  this  side  of  the  Mississippi  River.  (See  Allan  Pinkerton's  "  Strikes, 
Communists,  Tramps,  and  Detectives,"  New  York,  Carleton,  1878;  J.  A.  Dacus's 
41  Annals  of  the  Great  Strikes  in  the  United  States,"  Chicago,  Palmer,  1877;  and 
"History  of  the  Railroad  Riots  of  1877,"  by  James  D.  McCabe,  alias  Edward 
W.  Martin,  Philadelphia,  National  Publishing  Company,  1877.) 


180    WOJSTDEKS  A^D  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 

use  of  the  largest  bodies  of  soldiers.  It  has  been  calculated 
that  one  day's  supply  for  an  army  of  eighty-five  thousand 
men  can  be  conveyed  four  hundred  miles  by  one  railway 
train  in  forty  hours,  and  the  same  amount  of  supplies  con- 
veyed by  the  common  roads  would  require  five  hundred 
draught  horses,  and  from  twenty-five  to  thirty  days'  time. 

During  the  Georgia  campaign,  General  Sherman  was 
linked  to  his  base  of  supplies  by  a  single  line  of  railroad, 
and  it  so  supplied  his  great  army  of  one  hundred  thousand 
men  that  not  a  soldier  was  for  a  single  day  without  suitable 
clothing  and  ammunition,  and  neither  man  nor  beast  ever 
lacked  food  for  twenty-four  h  ours  at  a  ti  me. 

In  1870,  when  the  Germans  were  besieging  Paris,  a 
single  railway  fed  the  whole  army  of  two  hundred  thousand 
men,  and  also  brought  up  the  siege'  materials  and  •  ^en- 
forcements at  the  rate  of  two  or  three  thousand  a  day.  In 
the  Italian  war  of  1859,  the  stracle  ferrate  proved  of  great 
value  to  the  French.  On  one  occasion  French  troops  arrived 
by  train  from  Genoa,  just  in  time  to  turn  the  scale  of  battle 
and  secure  the  victory  for  their  army.  It  seems  odd  to 
think  of  a  general  ordering  a  special  train  in  order  that  he 
may  be  in  time  for  an  engagement,  but  such  things  have 
happened. 

The  facilities  for  the  rapid  mobilization  and  concentration 
of  troops  have  been  increased  six-fold  by  this  magnificent 
instrument,  the  railway.  "Victory  is  in  the  legs  of  soldiers," 
said  Napoleon.  How  fortunate  it  was  that  the  great  Corsi- 
can  had  ended  his  career  before  the  introduction  of  rail- 
ways; for,  with  such  a  beautiful  toy  in  his  hands,  his  splen- 
did strategic  genius  would  perhaps  have  enabled  him  to 
enslave  all  Europe,  for  a  time,  at  least.  Think  how  field- 
railways  would  have  changed  the  relations  of  armies  at 


THE  FUNCTIONS  OF  THE  RAILWAY  IN  WAR.  181 


Waterloo.  But  Napoleon  and  Wellington  were  no  better 
off  than  Eameses  II  in  the  matter  of  transportation  of 
troops.  In  these  times,  the  railway  and  the  telegraph  have 
made  of  a  great  battle  a  still  more  scientific  game  of  chess 
than  it  was  in  the  days  of  the  European  generals  just  named. 

Railroads  not  only  save  the  long  and  terrible  marches 
which  kill  more  men  than  die  on  the  field  of  battle,  but 
they  also  lessen  the  expense  of  a  war  by  hastening  its  issue. 
They  permit  of  the  rapid  disposal  of  large  bodies  of  pris- 
oners, and,  above  all,  they  admit  of  the  rapid  removal  of 
the  wounded  to  clean  and  roomy  quarters.  Napoleon  said 
that  he  preferred  a  dead  soldier  to  a  wounded  one.  The 
wounded  are  an  encumbrance  to  an  army,  both  during  and 
after  an  engagement,  and  the  superior  .comforts  to  be 
attained  at  a  distance  from  the  jar  and  clash  of  war,  make 
the  function  of  the  railway,  in  this  respect,  a  blessed  one. 
During  the  Franco- Prussian  war,  very  few  German  soldiers 
died  from  wounds  received;  for  they  were  removed  at  once 
to  cheerful  hospitals  in  the  interior  of  Germany,  where  the 
feeling  that  they  were  at  home,  and  the  home-nursing, 
wrought  wonders  for  them  in  a  short  time.  The  hospital 
cars  that  carried  them  from  the  battle-field  contained  straw 
mattresses  resting  on  boards  and  springs;  there  was  an 
attendant  in  each  car,  and  attached  to  each  train  were  a 
cook,  a  surgeon  or  two,  an  apothecary  with  his  medicine 
chest,  and'  an  officer  in  charge  of  the  whole  train.  During 
our  own  civil  war,  the  Sanitary  Commission  carried  two 
hundred  and  twenty- five  thousand  wounded  men  to  the 
rear  in  hospital  cars.  During  the  Tennessee  campaigns, 
the  Commission  bought  a  train  of  cars  of  its  own.  Its 
"  railway  ambulances  "  were  fitted  up  with  elastic  beds,  and 
all  the  appliances  of  a  regular  hospital.    The  steamboats  of 


182    WOKDEKS  AHD  CUEIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 


the  Tennessee  and  Cumberland  Rivers  were  also  used  for 
the  same  purpose. 

The  Germans  are  far  in  advance  of  other  nations  in  the 
scientific  study  of  the  functions  and  possibilities  of  the  rail- 
way in  war.  Previous  to  the  struggle  of  1870-71,  their 
soldiers  had  been  trained  to  embark  and  disembark  from 
the  cars  with  rapidity  and  precision.  There  was,  and  still 
is,  a  railway  section  of  the  general  staff,  the  duty  of  which 
in  time  of  war,  is  to  acquire  a  precise  knowledge  of  all  the 
railroads  of  the  hostile  country,  and  of  the  best  means  of 
crippling  or  gaining  possession  of  them.  In  time  of  peace, 
it  is  the  duty  of  the  railway  staff  to  study  the  railways  of 
Germany,  and  of  foreign  countries  with  whom  she  may  at 
some  future  time  be  at  war.  In  1870  the  consequence  of 
this  system  was,  that  at  the  end  of  four  days  after  the 
order  for  the  mobilization  of  the  troops,  the  most  minute 
arrangements,  down  to  the  hour  and  minute,  for  the  depart- 
ure of  trains  and  troops  had  been  made,  and  forty  trains  a 
day  began  the  transportation  of  troops  and  supplies  to  the 
frontier,  where,  in  the  course  of  a  fortnight,  every  portion 
of  the  vast  army,  down  to  the  grave-diggers,  had  arrived 
and  was  in  its  place. 

Then,  by  means  of  the  railways,  each  corps  of  the  Ger- 
man army  was  connected  with  and  fed  by  its  own  local 
district,  thus  rendering  all  Germany  the  source  of  supply 
for  the  troops.  In  strong  contrast  with  this  system  was  the 
state  of  the  French  army.  In  France  all  was  confusion. 
Their  supplies  were  stored  up  in  magazines,  and  the  most 
contradictory  orders  were  received  in  regard  to  the  disposi- 
•  tion  of  them.  Their  railways  were  the  scene  of  obstruction 
and  confused  and  aimless  movements,  while  those  of  Ger- 
many "  were  acting  with  the  unity  and  certainty  of  full 


THE  FUHCTIOHS  OF  THE  RAILWAY  W  WAR.  183 


rivers  flowing  onward  to  the  sea.1'  *  A  good  instance  of 
the  value  to  the  German  army  of  its  railway  corps  is  noted 
by  historians  of  the  Franco- Prussian  war.  When  the  gar- 
rison of  the  fortress  of  Metz  interrupted  railway  traffic  on 
the  line  from  Saarbruck  through  Pont-a-Mousson  to  Paris, 
and  by  Nancy  to  Strasbourg,  General  Yon  Moltke  directed 
a  railroad  twenty-five  miles  long  to  be  built,  uniting  the 
Metz  and  Saarbruck  and  the  Metz  and  Paris  lines.  Three 
thousand  miners  working  night  and  day,  amid  the  roar  of 
cannon,  built  the  road  in  half  a  week  or  less,  and  the  rail- 
way communication  of  the  German  army  was  reestablished. 

Since  the  Franco-Prussian  war  the  Germans  have  been 
paying  more  attention  than  ever  before  to  the  discipline  of 
their  army  in  railway  tactics.  They  have  recently  added  a 
railway  regiment  to  their  permanent  army  organization. 
It  is  the  duty  of  this  regiment  both  to  construct  railways 
and  destroy  them,  and  to  engage  in  practical  railway  ser- 
vice. The  government  has  appropriated  a  railroad  forty 
miles  in  length  for  the  purpose  of  practising  the  men, 
although  the  road  also  carries  freight  and  passengers  like 
any  ordinary  road.  The  sergeants  serve  as  conductors,  and 
the  privates  as  brakemen,  engineers  and  firemen.  Those 
not  serving  on  the  train  are  kept  at  work  laying  track, 
tearing  it  up,  and  in  every  way  learning  both  how  to 
utilize  railroads  and  how  to  render  them  unfit  for  use  to 
others.f 

*The  author  has  noted  that,  as  early  as  1866,  M.  Louis  Gregori,  in  a  paper 
published  in  the  a  Revue  des  Deux  Mondes,'1  had  suggested  at  length  to  the 
French  people  the  formation  of  a  military  railway  organization.  Well  would 
it  have  been  for  poor  France  if  she  had  but  listened  to  her  counsellor ! 

tFor  more  detailed  and  technical  information  concerning  the  influence  of 
railways  in  modifying  the  movements  and  status  of  armies,  the  following  works 
may  be  consulted:  uDer  Krieg  im  Jahre  1870,"  von  M.  Annenkoff,  Berlin,  1871 ; 
uDas  Train-communications  und  Verpflegswesen  vom  operativen  Standpunkte," 
von  H.  Obauer  und  E.  R.  Von  Gutenberg,  Wien,  1871 ;  "  La  deuxieme  Armee 


184    WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 

To  recur  to  our  .  own  civil  war.  Although  neither  the 
Confederate  nor  the  Union  troops  had  been  previously 
drilled  in  railway  manipulation  and  tactics,  yet  their  gen- 
erals soon  discovered  the  great  strategic  importance  of  the 
iron  roads,  and  the  necessity  for  railway  corps  in  the 
armies.  Many  of  the  most  exciting  episodes  of  the  war 
arose  from  the  attempt  of  one  side  or  the  other  to  control 
important  lines  of  railway.  The  chief  object  of  General 
Sherman  in  his  march  to  the  sea  was  to  cut  and  destroy  the 
railroads  in  the  enemy's  country,  and  thus  prevent  the 
rapid  transference  of  the  seat  of  war  from  Richmond  to  a 
point  further  south.  He  accomplished  his  object,  and  the 
long  lines  of  ash-heaps,  charred  wrecks  of  bridges,  and 
twisted  ties  he  left  behind,  played  an  important  part  in  the 
series  of  movements  that  struck  the  death-blow  to  the  con- 
federacy. The  South  had  no  time  for  forging  iron  rails, 
even  if  she  had  had  the  shops  and  tools;  and  during  the 
latter  days  of  the  contest  the  rails  on  southern  roads  had 
become  terribly  used  up  from  long  service.  Those  twisted 
by  Sherman's  men  could  not  be  repaired  except  by  special 
machinery;  the  loss  to  the  South  was  irreparable. 

During  the  Atlanta  campaign  of  Sherman,  says  Jacob 
D.  Cox,  the  railroad  repairs  of  the  army  were  under  the 
management  of  a  construction  corps  of  two  thousand  men, 
and  there  was  also  a  large  railroad  transportation  depart- 
ment. Their  work  was  of  the  highest  importance;  the 
interchangeable  timbers  of  wooden  truss  bridges  were 
always  kept  prepared  in  the  rear,  and  when  a  bridge  was 
burned  by  the  enemy  it  was  restored  as  if  by  magic.  At 
Chattahoochee  and  other  places  great  trestle-work  bridges 

de  la  Loire,"  par  le  General  Chanzy,  Paris,  1871;  "La  Guerre  en  Province  pen- 
dant leSie'ge  de  Paris,  1870,  1871,"  Paris,  1871. 


THE  FUNCTIONS  OF  THE  RAILWAY  m  WAR,  185 


hundreds  of  feet  long  and  nearly  a  hundred  feet  high  were 
woven  together  with  the  rapidity  with  which  an  ordinary 
pioneer  corps  bridges  a  petty  ravine.  Nothing  disheartened 
the  Confederates  more  in  this  campaign  than  to  hear  the 
whistle  of  the  locomotive  in  the  rear  of  the  Union  troops, 
within  a  few  hours  after  they  had  heard  that  the  railways 
had  been  broken  so  as  to  cause  the  Yankees  great  delay  and 
annoyance. 

The  story  of  that  thrilling  episode  of  the  war,  the 
"  Capture  of  a  Locomotive,"  has  several  times  been  told.* 
Twenty-two  picked  young  men  in  the  army  of  General  0.  M. 
Mitchell  band  themselves  together  in  romantic  secrecy  for  a 
desperate  and  daring  adventure,  which  is  no  less  a  feat  than 
proceeding  in  disguise  within  the  enemy's  lines,  seizing  a 
locomotive  and  car,  and  then,  in  rapid  flight  toward  Chatta- 
nooga and  their  own  lines,  burning  behind  them  the 
bridges  of  the  railroad,  and  so  crippling  the  hostile  force  that 
General  Mitchell  shall  be  enabled  to  seize  both  Chattanooga 
and  Atlanta,  and  thus  hold  the  key  to  east  Tennessee.  The 
chosen  band  separate  to  meet  at  a  certain  rendezvous  on  the 
railroad ;  they  all  arrive  but  two ;  enter  a  train  loaded  with 
Confederate  troops  and  ammunition;  and  when  they  reach 
Marietta,  and  the  engineer,  fireman  and  other  employes  of 
the  train  have  all  entered  a  restaurant  for  dinner,  boldly 
walk  forward,  climb  into  the  baggage-car  and  engine,  which 
they  have  quietly  uncoupled  from  the  rest  of  the  train,  and 
before  anybody  knows  what  has  happened  are  thundering 
away  along  the  track.  The  astonished  conductor  pursues 
in  a  hand-car,  reaches  the  next  station,  boards  a  passenger 
train,  and  is  after  them  with  a  volunteer  force.    And  then 

*  For  instance,  in  "  Harper's  Monthly,11  and  in  the  book  of  Rev.  Wm.  Pitten- 
ger,  published  by  the  Lippincotts. 


186    WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 

begins  one  of  the  most  exciting  chases  on  record.    Two  of 
the  Union  men  are  accomplished  engineers;  the  remainder, 
are  concealed  in  the  baggage-car.    The  engineer  and  his 
fireman  give  out  at  every  station  that  they  are  carrying 
powder  in  a  special  train  to  Beauregard's  army;  they  cut 
the  telegraph  wires  as  they  go,  and  tear  up  the  track  at 
intervals;  successfully  pass  a  train  coming  in  the  opposite 
direction,  but  not  before  waiting  a  fatal  half  hour  and  more 
for  it;  from  time  to  time  see  the  pursuing  train  close 
behind  them,  and  try  in  vain  to  stop  it  by  dropping  ties  on 
the  track  and  tearing  up  rails;  the  men  in  the  baggage-car 
chopping  up  the  sides  of  their  car  for  fuel;  and  after  a  wild, 
mad  race  of  one  hundred  miles  being  obliged  at  last  to  take 
to  the  woods  owing  to  the  fuel  and  water  of  the  engine  hav- 
ing given  out.    It  happened  that  there  was  a  regimental 
muster  near  the  place  where  they  abandoned  their  locomo- 
tive, and  the  planters  were  present  with  their  bloodhounds 
and  horses.    The  fugitives  were  therefore  all  captured  and 
thrust  into  a  foul  negro  prison.    Andrews,  the  leader,  was 
hung  at  once;  seven  more  soon  followed  him.    And  the. 
order  came  for  the  execution  of  the  rest.    But  they  gagged 
their  jailer,  overpowered  the  guard,  and  escaped  by  miracu- 
lous good  fortune  —  two  to  a  United  States  gunboat  on  the 
Gulf,  and  others  to  the  Union  lines.    Six  were,  however, 
recaptured,  and  were  afterward  exchanged.    When  they 
arrived  at  Washington  they  were  given  a  reception  by 
President  Lincoln,  received  each  a  medal,  had  their  money 
arrearages  made  up  to  them,  besides  receiving  each  a  purse 
of  a  hundred  dollars  and  a  furlough  for  the  purpose  of  vis- 
iting their  friends.    In  significant  contrast  with  this  treat- 
ment was  that  received  by  the  brave  and  energetic  con- 
ductor, Puller,  who  pursued  the  dare-devils  who  had  run 


THE  FUNCTIONS  OF  THE  RAILWAY  IK  WAR.  187 


188    WONDEBS  AND  CUKIOSITIES  OF  THE  EAILWAY. 


away  with  his  locomotive,  and  handsomely  captured  them 
all  to  a  man.  For  this  service  he  got  a  vote  of  thanks  from 
the  Georgia  Legislature,  and  the  promise  of  a  medal,  which 
he  never  received! 

There  is  doubtless  many  another  as  thrilling  adventure 
as  this  that  might  be  told  of  the  days  of  the  war.  And 
there  are  probably  many  new  functions  of  the  railway  as  a 
military  agent  still  to  be  thought  of  and  set  in  operation. 
One  of  the  most  curious  uses  to  which  a  railway  train  has 
been  put  in  war  was  that  devised  by  the  English  in  their 
Egyptian  campaign  of  1882.  They  fitted  up  an  Armored 
Railway  Train  as  a  kind  of  moving  fort.  It  was  operated 
on  the  railway  near  Alexandria.  Six  car-trucks  containing 
soldiers  were  furnished  with  iron  shields  at  the  sides;  the 
locomotive  had  a  car  preceding  it,  and  had  its  sides  pro- 
tected with  rows  of  sand-bags.  One  of  the  cars  carried  a 
crane;  a  Nordenfeldt  gun  looked  over  the  bows,  and  three 
Gatlings  projected  from  the  rear  of  the  train,  which  car- 
ried, in  addition  to  what  has  been  mentioned,  mines,  electric 
apparatus,  and  appliances  for  laying  down  and  destroying 
tracks. 


CHAPTER  XII. 


THE  LUXURIES  OP  TRAVEL. 


F  that  querulous  old  Bostonian,  Mr.  Breck,  whose  com-' 


plaints  about  the  unseemly  mingling  of  castes  in  the 


have  no  need  to  harp  on  that  particular  theme  any  longer. 
His  aristocratic  tastes  would  be  abundantly  gratified  by  the 
first-class  cars  of  nearly  every  country  into  which  he  would 
be  apt  to  travel.  The  Russian  saloon-cars  have  already  been 
described  (page  101).  The  ordinary  Wagner  and  Pullman 
coaches  of  America,  with  their  luxurious  appointments,  are 
too  well  known  to  the  readers  of  this  day  to  need  descrip- 
tion. But  how  Mr.  Breck  would  have  pitied  the  mental 
state  of  the  man  who  should  have  told  him  that  in  fifty  years 
from  the  time  when  he  wrote  his  little  Jeremiad,  people 
would  travel  on  steam  trains  containing  a  smoking  car, 
parlor-dining-room-and-sleeping  car,  kitchen,  wine-cellar 
and  bathing-rooms.* 

The  height  of  luxury  in  travel  has  been  reached  by 
royalty  in  Europe  and  nabobism  in  America.  Contrast  the 
travelling  coach  of  Napoleon  I  with  the  railway  train  of 
his  imperial  nephew. 

Bonaparte's  carriage  (used  by  him  in  the  Russian  cam- 
paign of  1815)  was  captured  by  the  English  at  Waterloo, 

*  On  some  few  railway  lines  in  the  United  States,  bathing-cars  have  been 
introduced,  containing  alcoves  furnished  with  bath-tubs  and  other  suitable 


railway  coaches  of  his  day  have  been  quoted  on  a  previous 
page  in  this  volume,  were  living  at  this  time,  he  would 


appurtenances. 


189 


190    WONDERS  AKD  CURIOSITIES  OE  THE  RAILWAY. 


and  now  suffers  the  ignominious  fate  of  being  placed  on 
exhibition  in  Madame  Tussaud's  wax- work  show  in  London. 
The  coach  is  a  model  of  compactness.    The  bedstead  is  of 
polished  steel,  and  there  is  a  projection  in  front  made  to 
receive  the  feet  of  the  occupant  when  he  was  reclining. 
Over  the  front  windows  is  a  roller-blind,  which,  when  pulled 
out,  admitted  air  and  excluded  rain.    The  secretaire  was 
fitted  up  for  Napoleon  by  Marie  Louise  with  nearly  one  hun- 
dred articles,  including  a  magnificent  breakfast  service  of 
gold,  a  gold  wash-basin,  spirit  lamp,  perfumes,  etc.    In  a 
recess  at  the  bottom  of  the  toilet-box  were  two  thousand  gold 
napoleons;  on  the  top  of  this  box  were  the  imperial  ward- 
robe, a  writing  desk,  maps,  telescopes,  arms,  a  liquor  case, 
and  a  large  silver  chronometer,  by  which  the  watches  of  the 
army  were  regulated.     Thus  cramped  and  cabined,  did 
the  great  Emperor  jolt  along  over  the  execrable  roads  of 
eastern  Europe.    Now  for  the  nephew. 

In  August,  1867,  the  Emperor  Napoleon  III,  with  tho 
Empress  Eugenie,  paid  a  visit  to  the  Emperor  and  Empress 
of  Austria.  Their  suite  of  travelling  apartments  consisted 
of  nine  railway  coaches,  communicating  with  each  other  by 
tastefully  decorated  bridges.  In  the  middle  was  a  hand- 
some sitting-room,  furnished  with  chairs,  ottomans,  pictures, 
clocks,  and  chandeliers.  On  one  side  of  this  room  was  the 
dining-room,  and  on  the  other  the  Emperor's  study.  In  the 
middle  of  the  dining-room  was  an  extension  table  with  easy 
chairs  ranged  parallel  to  the  sides  of  the  car.  The  Em- 
peror's study  contained  an  elegant  writing  table,  a  clock,  in 
the  style  of  the  Renaissance,  a  thermometer,  barometer,  and 
telegraphic  apparatus,  by  means  of  which  communication 
was  established  with  the  several  apartments  of  the  various 
court  officials  travelling  with  the  royal  pair.    Next  to  the 


THE  LUXURIES  OF  TRAVEL. 


191 


study  was  the  bed-room  of  the  Emperor  and  Empress,  with 
dressing-rooms  attached.  In  the  remaining  cars  were  the 
apartments  of  the  imperial  suite,  the  kitchen,wine-cellar,  and 
a  conservatory  filled  with  the  choicest  flowers.  And  all  this, 
Monsieur  Bonaparte,  flying  forward  at  forty  miles  an  hour, 
with  no  jolting,  no  broken  axles,  and  no  mud! 

Let  us  also  see  how  Queen  Victoria  travels.  Her  jour- 
neying is  slightly  different  from  that  of  the  Queen  of  She- 
ba  to  Jerusalem.  When  the  Queen  of  England  travels  from 
Windsor  to  Balmoral,  she  traverses  the  length  of  England 
in  a  single  night,  reposing  in  a  royal  car.  The  utmost  pre- 
cautions are  taken  for  her  safety,  and  detailed  instructions 
are  issued  to  the  various  railway  officials  for  that  purpose; 
none  of  the  public  are  admitted,  under  any  circumstances, 
to  the  stations  between  Banbury  and  Edinburgh;  the  rail- 
way servants  perform  the  necessary  work  on  the  platforms  as 
noiselessly  as  possible ;  and  no  cheering  is  permitted  to  dis- 
turb the  repose  of  the  Queen;  the  royal  train  is  preceded  by 
a  pilot  engine,  and  is  furnished  with  continuous  brakes  and 
electric  communicators;  and,  finally,  a  lookout  man  is  sta- 
tioned on  the  tender  of  the  engine  with  orders  to  keep  a  sharp 
eye  upon  the  rear  of  the  train  for  signals  in  that  direction, 
and  similar  orders  are  given  to  the  guard  in  the  front  car. 

In  America,  too,  we  have  some  royal  travellers.  When 
Senator  Sharon,  of  Nevada  ("  the  silver  satrap  of  the 
Sierras"),  wishes  to  go  from  his  home  to  Washington  or 
New  York,  he  orders  his  wagon  to  be  brought  out  of  the 
barn  and  hitched  up  for  his  little  drive  over  the  continent. 
The  wagon  is  a  private  palace  car,  finished  inside  with  rare 
native  woods,  pier-mirrors,  hanging  book-shelves,  evening 
card-table  and  luxurious  sofas,  while  costly  crystal,  and 
delicate  china  and  silver  ware  crown  the  oak  buffet.  When 


192    WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OE  THE  RAILWAY. 


the  senator  reaches  Washington,  he  stores  his  car  until  he 
wishes  to  return. 

The  elegant  private  car  of  President  Yanderbilt  is  fitted 
up  with  a  state-room,  sitting  and  dining-room,  card-room, 
observatory,  kitchen,  electric  bells,  and  the  richest  furniture 
of  every  kind.  When  he  travels,  he  has  a  special  engine, 
and  a  special  time-table,  and  all  other  trains  must  keep  out 
of  his  way.  He  often  traverses  a  hundred  miles  in  a  hun- 
dred minutes;  the  mere  conception  of  such  speed  almost 
takes  away  one's  breath. 

Mr.  Vanderbilt's  car  cost  twenty  thousand  dollars;  as  did 
also  a  beautiful  oar  presented  to  Mr.  E.  H.  Talbott,  the  editor 
of  the  "  Railway  Age,"  in  Chicago,  by  various  manufacturing 
firms  of  the  country,  in  token  of  admiration  for  his  ener- 
getic administration  of  the  Chicago  Exhibition  of  Railway 
Appliances.  It  is  needless  to  say  that  there  is  nothing  of 
the  nabob  about  Mr.  Talbott.  His  car  is  simply  designed 
to  exhibit  a  model  railway  coach.  It  is  a  perfect  beauty 
from  wheel  to  deck-lights.  The  parlor  is  finished  in  solid 
mahogany.  The  larger  pieces  of  the  silver  service  are 
engraved  with  representations  of  old  historical  locomotives 
and  cars.  In  a  mahogany  case  are  working  models  of  the 
Westinghouse  brakes,  so  arranged  as  to  show  every  move- 
ment of  the  engineer  in  handling  them,  and  being,  in  addi- 
tion, actually  connected  with  brakes  of  the  whole  train,  so 
that  an  occupant  of  the  car  can  stop  it  at  pleasure.  There 
are  also  an  observation-room,  bed-rooms,  kitchen  and  pantry. 
The  chief  rooms  are  finished  with  the  richest  woods,  native 
and  foreign,  in  their  natural  colors,  and  furnished  with 
mirrors,  carpets  and  upholstery  in  keeping  with  the  other 
features  of  the  carriage. 

Let  us  now  look  at  a  bit  of  the  history  pertaining  to  the 


THE  LUXURIES  OF  TRAVEL. 


193 


invention  of  these  luxurious  travelling  hotels.  The  first 
sleeping-car  ever  built  in  the  United  States  was  made  in 
the  shops  of  the  Terre  Haute,  Alton  and  St.  Louis  railroad, 
by  a  mechanic  named  Woodruff.    The  coach  provided  seats 


(By  courtesy  of  the  "  Railway  Age.") 
INTERIOR  OF  THE  "RAILWAY  AGE "  CAR. 


for  sixty  passengers,  and  at  night  the  said  seats  were  con- 
verted into  flat  berths.  The  inventor  was  too  poor  to  pay 
the  patent  fees.    So  the  president  of  the  road  drew  up  the 

initial  papers,  and  advanced  him  the  money  by  which  the 
13 


194   WOKDERS  AtfD  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 

patent  was  secured  (1856  or  1857).  Colonel  Childs,  engin- 
eer of  the  railroad,  took  a  half  interest  in  the  patent  for 
a  merely  nominal  sum.  But  after  the  patent  had  been 
secured  there  was  no  one  in  Terre  Haute  interested  enough 
in  the  invention  to  advance  funds  for  having  it  introduced 
into  use.  The  officers  of  the  road  laid  the  subject  before 
the  superintendent  of  the  New  York  Central  railroad,  who 
allowed  a  couple  of  cars  to  be  fitted  up  as  sleepers  and  run 
upon  the  western  division  of  the  Central.  It  is  tolerably 
certain  that  Webster  Wagner  saw  the  novel  cars,  or  heard 
of  them,  and  thereupon  sopfc  to  work  at  the  invention  of  his 
own  sleeping-cars,  for  in  1858  he  built  for  the  New  York 
Central  four  sleeping-coaches,  which  he  patented.  Wood- 
ruff disputed  his  patent  in  the  courts;  his  (Woodruff's)  prior 
claim  was  admitted,  and  he  consequently  received  a  hand- 
some royalty  from  both  the  Wagner  and  the  Pullman  com- 
panies, and  died  worth  several  hundred  thousand  dollars. 
Wagner  built  his  first  palace-car  in  1867.  He  was  of  Ger- 
man descent,  was  born  in  Palatine,  New  York,  was  appren- 
ticed to  his  elder  brother  to  learn  the  wagon-maker's  trade, 
and  later  became  connected  with  the  railroad  in  some  sub- 
ordinate capacity,  where  he  was  led  to  apply  his  mechanical 
knowledge  to  the  invention  of  the  most  sumptuous  wagon  in 
the  world.  He  was  elected  to  the  state  legislature  after 
he  had  become  rich  and  well  known,  and  was  killed  in  one 
of  his  own  coaches,  by  the  railway  accident  at  Spuyten  Duy- 
vil,  January  13,  1882.  Senator  Wagner  was  tall,  with  a 
slight  stoop  in  his  broad  shoulders;  his  eyes  were  blue,  and 
hair  and  beard  gray  at  the  time  of  his  death. 

George  M.  Pullman,  founder  of  the  car  company  and  the 
model  town  in  Illinois  that  bear  his  name  (the  town  is  ten 
miles  south  of  Chicago),  was  once  a  miner  in  Colorado,  and 


THE  ■  LUXURIES  OE  TKAVEL. 


195 


is  said  to  have  been  so  poor  that,  like  both  Woodruff  and 
Wagner,  it  was  with  difficulty  that  he  could  raise  money 
enough  to  introduce  his  invention  of  a  day  coach  trans- 
formed into  a  sleeper.  His  first  car  was  run  in  1859. 
Some  of  the  early  Pullman  cars  had  sixteen  wheels  instead 
of  twelve,  the  present  number. 

The  latest  luxury  for  travellers  is  the  Mann  "  boudoir  " 
car  —  divided  into  eight  cosey  little  rooms,  some  for  two 
and  others  for  four  persons  each.  The  boudoirs  are  all  on 
one  side  of  the  car,  an  aisle  running  along  the  other  side. 
There  is  a  smoking  room,  and  there  are  electric  bells,  etc: 
In  short,  one  can  travel  in  these  cars  in  complete  privacy, 
as  if  he  were  in  his  own  coach.  The  cars  were  first  run 
between  Boston  and  New  York. 

Smoking-cars  may  be  counted  among  the  luxuries  of 
the  rail;  luxuries  for  men  in  the  positive  sense,  and  for 
women  in  the  negative  sense.  It  is  rather  an  embarrassing 
case  for  the  conductor  when  he  discovers  a  woman  smok- 
ing a  pipe  in  a  railroad  car.  At  one  of  the  railway 
stations  between  Cologne  and  Berlin,  a  few  years  ago,  a 
lady  was  being  shown  into  a  ladies'  car  by  the  porter  of 
the  station,  when,  to  their  dismay,  they  beheld  two  recum- 
bent dames  each  with  a  small  meerschaum  between  her 
lips.  The  lady  pointed  in  horror  to  the  smoke,  and  gazed 
at  the  porter;  he  pointed  to  the  label  on  the  car  window 
{Fur  Bamen)  and  stared  blankly  into  the  coupe.  The 
case  was  not  provided  for  in  the  regulations,  and  nobody 
knew  what  was  to  be  done  about  it.  Luckily  a  gentle- 
man came  forward  at  this  point  of  the  comedy,  and  handed 
the  lady  into  the  "  non-smoking  "  car. 

A  similar  case  is  related  to  have  occurred  in  this  country. 
As  an  American  conductor  was  one  day  going  through  a 


196   WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OE  THE  RAILWAY. 

car  he  saw  a  woman  smoking  a  pipe  with  great  com- 
posure. 

"Madam,"  he  said,  "we  don't  even  allow  men  to  smoke 
in  this  car." 

"That  is  an  excellent  rule,"  she  replied  very  coolly;  "if 
I  see  any  man  smoking  in  here  I'll  inform  you  at  once." 

Speed  is  held  by  the  people  of  this  hurrying  age  to  be  one 
of  the  chief  luxuries  of  a  journey  by  steam.  And  so  it  is  if 
every  precaution  is  taken  against  accidents.  It  is  a  mistake 
to  think  that  there  is  any  more  danger  in  running  a  train 
at  the  rate  of  forty  miles  an  hour  over  a  good  road  than  at 
twenty-five  an  hour.  The  reasons  why  it  is  safer  to  drive 
an  engine  sixty  miles  an  hour  now  than  it  was  twenty  miles 
an  hour  twenty-five  years  ago,  are  these:  we  now  have  the 
Miller  platform  and  buffer,'  which  closely  bind  the  different 
cars  together  and  lessen  the  danger  of  derailment;  the  rails 
are  jointed  with  fish-plates;  there  are  five  cross- ties  now 
where  there  were  three  formerly;  locomotives  and  cars  are 
built  stronger  than  they  used  to  be;  and  most  roads  are 
provided  with  experienced  train-despatchers  and  telegraph 
operators,  and  a  system  of  electric  signals.  Assuming  the 
tensile  strength  of  a  Bessemer  steel  car- wheel  tire  to  be  one 
hundred  and  twenty-five  thousand  pounds  per  square  inch, 
and  taking  twenty-five  as  a  factor  of  safety,  it  is  certain 
that  the  wheel  can  safely  revolve  so  as  to  attain  a  speed  of 
one  hundred  and  fifty  miles  an  hour.  But  such  a  high  rate 
of  speed  would  be  uncomfortable  and  costly.  It  is  five 
times  as  expensive  to  run  a  train  at  sixty  miles  per  hour  as 
it  is  at  twenty;  both  speed  and  steepness  of  grade  are  costly 
in  the  matter  of  expenditure  of  power.  But  the  motto  of 
the  day  is  "  speed  at  any  cost,"  and  the  railway  companies 
must  meet  the  demand. 


THE  LUXURIES  OF  TRAVEL, 


197 


It  is  a  fact  not  often  recognized  that  extremely  high 
rates  of  speed  were  attained  in  the  very  earliest  days  of  the 
railroad.  Mr.  I.  K.  Brunei,  engineer  on  the  Great  Western 
railroad,  England,  advertised  in  the  "Mark  Lane  Express" 
in  1841,  that  he  would  perform  a  match  from  Bristol  to 
London  by  the  engine  called  "  The  Hurricane,"  within  two 
hours.  This  was  at  the  rate  of  sixty  miles  the  hour.  In 
the  "  Illustrated  London  News  "  for  August  10,  1844,  it 
is  stated  that  the  journey  by  rail  from  Slough  to  London 
(eighteen  miles)  was  accomplished  in  fifteen  minutes  and 
ten  seconds;  and  Mr.  R.  Dymond,  F.S.A.,  states  in  "  Notes  and 
Queries,"  January  8,  1881,  that  in  1846  he  travelled  with 
Brunei  over  the  South  Devonshire  railroad  at  a  speed  of 
seventy  miles  an  hour.  And*  to  this  day  English  trains  are 
thought  to  exceed  ours  in  speed  by  from  twenty  to  twenty- 
five  per  cent,  their  freight  trains  running  as  fast  as  our  ex- 
presses, or  thirty  miles  an  hour.  But  a  correspondent  of  the 
New  York  "  Evening  Post "  writes  from  London  that  critical 
examination  does  not  sustain  the  accepted  notion  of  the 
superior  velocity  of  English  trains.  He  states  that  the 
rates  for  England  are  forty-one  to  forty-seven  miles  per 
hour.  The  "Flying  Dutchman,"  the  famous  fast  train  of 
the  Great  Western  road,  only  makes  forty-six  miles  an 
hour,  while  the  Leeds  Express  attains  forty-seven,  and  the 
Midland  Scotch  Express,  forty-one.  On  the  Continent  there 
is  a  train  running  from  Berlin  to  Hanover  that  travels  fifty- 
one  and  seven-tenths  miles  per  hour;  and  a  through  train 
now  runs  from  St.  Petersburg  to  Paris,  without  stoppage, 
at  the  rate  of  fifty-six  miles  an  hour.  The  fastest  trains  in 
this  country  are  those  between  New  York  and  Philadelphia 
over  the  Bound  Brook  and  the  Pennsylvania  Company's 
routes.  These  average  forty-five  to  forty-seven  miles  an  hour, 


198    WOKDERS  AKD  CURIOSITIES  OE  THE  RAILWAY. 


and  sometimes  make  sixty  miles  in  sixty  minutes.  An  engine 
built  by  the  Baldwin  Locomotive  Works  ran  ninety  miles  in 
ninety-eight  minutes;  the  English  feature  of  a  single  driv- 
ing-wheel on  each  side  instead  of  two,  gave  this  engine  its 
advantage.  For  a  high  rate  of  speed  over  long  distances 
the  New  York  and  Chicago  Limited  beats  the  world.  It 
whirls  over  the  nine  hundred  and  thirteen  miles  that  sepa- 
rate the  two  cities,  in  twenty-five  hours. 

They  seemed  to  take  things  in  a  good,  old-fashioned, 
leisurely  way,  on  some  of  the  English  roads  at  least,  in  the 
year  1859,  if  we  may  judge  from  the  following  incident 
taken  by  the  author  from  the  London  "Times1'  of  that  year. 
It  relates  to  the  Stopping  of  a  Train  by  Mushrooms:  An 
English  traveller,  who  was  passing  over  a  railroad  on  the 
English  side  of  the  border-line  of  South  Wales,  says:  "We 
happened  to  pass  a  field  strown  with  ,  a  most  luxurious 
growth  of  mushrooms.  I  had  hardly  remarked  the  circum- 
stance to  my  companion  when  we  felt  the  train  suddenly 
stop,  and  looking  out  to  the  front,  we  saw,  to  our  astonish- 
ment, the  driver  jump  off  the  engine,  vault  over  the  fence, 
and  proceed  to  fill  his  hat  with  the  treasure.  In  a  moment 
the  guard  was  over  the  fence  following  his  example,  which, 
as  may  be  supposed,  was  infectious,  for  in  less  than  half  a 
minute  every  door  was  thrown  open,  and  the  field  covered 
with  the  passengers,  every  one  of  whom  brought  back  a 
pretty  good  hatful," 


CHAPTER  XIII. 


THE  LOCOMOTIVE  AND  ITS  MASTER. 

Staym-ingynes,  that  stand  in  lines, 

Enormous  and  amazing; 
That  squeal  and  snort  like  whales  in  sport, 

Or  elephants  a-grazing.—  Thackeray. 

&RIP  AND  GO  are  the  requisites  of  a  good  locomotive, 
says  Mr.  F.  Scott  Russell.    The  enemy  of  grip  is  slip; 
damp  makes  slip,  but  dry  gives  grip.   That  is  to  say,  a  loco- 
motive gets  a  better  bite  on  a  dry  rail  than  on  a  wet  one. 
When  the  iron  wheel  rolls  over  the  track,  a  weight  of  seven 
tons  causes  a  grip  of  one  ton.  At  least,  in  dry  countries  this 
is  the  case.    But  in  moist  countries  it  takes  a  weight  of  ten 
tons  to  give  a  grip  of  one  ton.    It  follows,  therefore,  that  to 
increase  the  traction  of  an  engine  you  have  only  to  increase 
its  weight.    But  a  limit  is  practically  set  to  this  increase ; 
for  a  very  heavy  locomotive  tears  the  rails  all  to  pieces, 
unless  the  weight  is  distributed  over  two  or  even  three 
pairs  of  coupled  driving-wheels.     The  application  of  this 
principle  of  numerous  driving-wheels  in  America  has  re- 
sulted in  the  production  of  monster  engines.  The  hierarchy 
in  order  of  size  is  (1)  "  Camel-backs,"  (2)  "  Moguls,"  (3) 
"  Consolidations,"  each  of  these  having  an  increase  over  the 
one  preceding,  in  the  number  of  its  driving-wheels.  Our 
locomotives  differ  much  from  those  of  England.  English 
engines  have  no  springs,  and  are  built  for  straight  and 
level  roads.    They  would  continually  be  jumping  the  track 
of  our  roads.    American  engines  are  flexible  machines, 

199 


200    WONDERS  AID  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 

being  hung  upon  springs  or  upon  the  fulcrums  of  a  system 
of  levers  balanced  equally  in  every  direction.  Now  if 
owing  to  the  inequality  of  the  road,  the  wheels  are  at  any 
time  wrenched  out  of  a  level  position,  the  frame  work  of 
the  locomotive  is  not  thereby  wrenched,  but  self-adjusted  to 
the  rails.  This  flexibility  of  the  truck  also  prevents  derail- 
ment. Our  engines  are  also  furnished  with  an  ingenious 
mechanism  for  shifting  the  weight  as  the  locomotive  turns 
a  curve.  By  means  of  this  device  the  locomotive  can  lean 
over  toward  the  inside  of  the  curve,  and  then  gracefully 
recover  its  equilibrium,  like  a  circus-rider  in  the  ring. 
The  inventor  of  the  essential  principle  of  this  truck  is  John 
B.  Jervis,  builder  of  the  Delaware  and  Hudson  canal. 

There  was  a  double  reason  for  the  use  of  a  cab  on  Amer- 
ican engines;  first,  to  protect  the  engineer  and  fireman 
from  the  smoke  and  flame  issuing  from  the  wood-burning 
locomotive,  and,  second,  to  protect  them  from  the  great  ex- 
tremes of  temperature  and  weather  that  characterize  our  cli- 
mate. The  early  engines  were  without  spark-arresters,  and 
the  flame  often  streamed  backward  as  far  as  to  the  engineer; 
and  even  now,  when  a  locomotive  is  drawing  a  heavy 
load,  the  exhaust  steam  causes  such  a  vacuum  in  the  funnel, 
and  draws  the  air  so  strongly  through  the  fire  and  along 
the  boiler  tubes  that  the  flame  pours  out  of  the  top  of  the 
chimney  a  foot  in  length  backward,  in  a  crimson  plume, 
while  the  engine  itself  is  humming  like  a  threshing  ma- 
chine.  The  beauty  of  the  smoke  as  it  rolls  from  the  funnel 
has  already  been  alluded  to.  A  cunning  old  hawk  in  France 
has  found  other  than  aesthetic  uses  for  this  black  cloud  of 
smoke.  The  old  pirate  has,  for  fifteen  years,  been  in  the 
habit  of  hiding  himself  in  the  smoke  and  steam  of  the  rail- 
way trains  running  between  the  stations  of  Mesgviny  and 


THE  LOCOMOTIVE  AND  ITS  MASTER.  201 

Romilly,  for  the  purpose  of  more  easily  pouncing  upon  the 
small  birds  that  fly  up  from  the  grass  and  bushes  upon  the 
approach  of  a  train.  The  rascal  knows  that  they  cannot 
see  him  in  the  smoke  and  steam,  and  he  flies  slow  or  fast 
with  the  train,  until  he  sees  an  opportunity  to  make  a  meal. 
In  the  same  way  fowls  will  follow  a  horse  or  a  cow  about  a 
meadow  to  catch  the  insects  disturbed  by  the  grazing  of  the 
animals. 

The  fire-steed  always  has  a  good  appetite;  he  will  toss 
you  down  one  thousand  two  hundred  gallons  of  water  and  a 
cord  of  wood  every  hour,  and  make  nothing  of  it.  He  is 
not  very  fastidious  about  his  dishes,  either,  and  when  wood 
and  coal  have  given  out,  he  has  been  known  at  various 
times  to  devour  (fressen)  such  strange  things  as  pigs,  mum- 
mies, fence-rails,  peat,  straw,  and  petroleum.  Straw-burn- 
ing locomotives  were  exhibited  at  a  Vienna  Exposition  a 
few  years  ago,  and  recently  Russian  locomotives  have 
employed  petroleum  for  fuel. 

The  average  life  of  a  locomotive  is  thirty  years.  At  the 
end  of  eleven  years  a  sum  equal  to  its  original  cost  has  usu- 
ally been  expended  upon  it.  An  engine  is  considered  to  be 
doing  good  service  if  it  runs  two  hundred  and  fifty  days  in  a 
year.  It  is  evident  that  a  machine  consisting  of  five  thou- 
sand four  hundred  and  sixteen  pieces,  cannot  be  subjected 
to  the  terrible  jolting  and  strain  and  soilure  of  rail  travel 
more  than  two  or  three  days,  without  needing  more  or  less 
repairing  and  cleansing.  Indeed,  the  iron  horse  needs  rest 
and  careful  tendance,  even  more  than  a  horse  of  flesh  and 
blood.  After  a  thousand  miles'  run  it  is  found  that  joints 
have  become  relaxed,  bolts  loosened,  rubbing  surfaces  often 
unequally  expanded  (by  heat  or  cold)  or  strained  and 
twisted,  the  grate-bars  and  fire-box  choked  with  clinkers, 


202    WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OE  THE  RAILWAY. 


and  the  tubes  obstructed  by  coke.  It  is  then  that  the 
engine-cleaners  show  themselves  in  all  their  glory.  They 
take  the  black  giant  into  the  stable  — these  greasy-capped 
grooms  and  hostlers  —  clean  out  the  fire-box,  scrape  the 
grate-bars,  tighten  the  bolts  and  rivets,  thoroughly  oil, 
cleanse,  and  polish  all  parts  subjected  to  friction,  and  allow 
the  heated  surfaces  to  cool  down,  until,  at  the  end  of  six  or 
eight  hours,  the  engine  is  again  ready  for  service. 

Speaking  of  engine-cleaners,  a  curious  incident  is  told  of 
one  formerly  in  the  employ  of  the  Chard  and  Taunton  Kail- 
road  Company,  in  England.  His  name  was  William  Stev- 
ens. One  midnight  William  took  it  into  his  head  to  have  a 
ride  on  the  locomotive  "  Busy  Bee."  Accordingly  he  kin- 
dled the  fire,  and  when  he  judged  he  had  a  sufficient  head  of 
steam,  pulled  the  throttle  and  started  off.  But  he  did  not 
know  how  to  compress  the  steam,  and  it  blew  off  in  every 
direction,  with  terrific  noise,  to  the  bewonderment  and 
alarm  of  the  awakened  inhabitants  of  the  neighborhood. 
Up  and  down  the  track  he  tore  in  this  manner  for  two 
mortal  hours,  his  face  white  with  suppressed  excitement,  as 
the  watchman  by  the  bridge  reported,  but  yet  enjoying  his 
ride  amazingly.  Once  as  he  was  on  the  point  of  entering 
the  main  line  of  the  Bristol  and  Exeter  road,  he  fortunately 
heard  the  whistle  of  the  approaching  night  mail  for 
London,  and  backed  away  just  in  time  to  avoid  a  terrible 
catastrophe.  At  length  he  returned  to  the  station,  got  off 
the  engine,  and  lay  down  by  its  side  to  await  the  coming  of 
the  engineer.  At  four  o'clock  the  engineer  was  walking 
toward  the  station,  and  when  within  a  hundred  yards  of  his 
locomotive,  suddenly  saw  it  blown  to  pieces  before  his  very 
eyes.  It  appeared  that  the  rascally  engine-cleaner  had 
exhausted  all  the  water  in  the  boiler,  and  neglected  to  turn 


THE  LOCOMOTIVE  AHD  ITS  MASTEB.  203 


on  more.  Strange  to  say,  the  blockhead  received  no  in- 
jury, owing  to  his  being  on  the  ground  when  the  explosion 
occurred.  But  if  the  "Busy  Bee  "was  prevented  from 
inserting  her  vindictive  sting  into  her  destroyer,  she  was 
none  the  less  revenged,  for  the  sentence  pronounced  by  the 
court  was  imprisonment  for  one  month  at  hard  labor. 

This  incident  calls  to  mind  another  which  happened  on  a 
railroad  near  Holyhead,  North  Wales.  One  dEiy  a  signal- 
man on  the  line  was  astonished  at  seeing  a  "  wild"  engine 
come  thundering  along  the  track  at  a  prodigious  rate,  and 
paying  no  attention  whatever  to  his  signals  of  danger. 
Now  the  Irish  mail  was  nearly  due  from  the  opposite  direc- 
tion, and  a  terrible  collision  seemed  inevitable.  Suddenly 
it  flashed  across  the  mind  of  the  man  that  the  engineer 
and  fireman  must  be  asleep.  He  telegraphed  at  once  to  the 
next  station  to  put  fog  signals  on  the  track.  His*surmise 
was  correct;  the  fog  signals  stopped  the  engine,  and  it 
appeared  that  the  men  had  been  fifteen  hours  on  duty, 
and  had  both  been  sound  asleep.  The  water  had  disap- 
peared from  the  boiler,  and  the  fire  was  nearly  out,  so  that, 
but  for  the  prompt  action  of  the  signalman,  they  would 
have  been  killed  by  the  explosion  of  the  engine,  even  if  the 
Irish  mail  had  spared  them.  They  were  both  immediately 
discharged;  but  not  with  much  justice,  it  wTould  seem,  when 
one  considers  that  the  cause  of  their  misfortune  was  the 
greed  or  neglect  of  the  company  in  keeping  them  so  long 
on  duty. 

The  life  of  a  locomotive  engineer  is  not  an  enviable  one. 
Apart  from  the  wearing  sense  of  responsibility,  and  the 
strain  and  jar  received  by  the  nervous  system,  there  are 
certain  popular  opinions  which  must  be  defied.  For 
instance,  it  is  the  firm  conviction  of  nearly  everybody  that 


204   WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OE  THE  RAILWAY. 

it  is  high  treason  for  an  engineer  to  jump  from  his  engine 
in  the  face  of  an  approaching  collision  or  wreck.  Now,  as 
a  matter  of  fact,  after  the  air-brakes  have  been  applied,  the 
engine  reversed,  and  the  sand- pipe  opened,  it  is  generally 
mere  folly  for  the  driver  and  fireman  to  stay  in  the  engine; 
with  the  certainty  of  an  approaching  collision.  The  men 
are  of  no  earthly  use  upon  the  engine  after  that,  and  if  they 
do  not  jump,  it  is  because  they  have  not  time,  or  are  too 
foolhardy.  In  most  cases,  then,  the  popular  talk  about  the 
"  glorious  heroism  "  of  the  engineer  who  "  refused  to  desert 
his  post,"  and  "  died  with  his  hand  on  the  reversing  lever," 
is  all  nonsense,  and  it  is  too  bad  that  the  gross  ignorance 
of  people  should  lead  them  to  exact  of  locomotive-drivers  a 
course  of  action  which  is  fatal  to  them  without  being  of  the 
slightest  use  to  anybody  else.  The  majority  of  engineers 
are,  by  draining  and  by  necessity,  men  of  physical  courage 
and  moral  stamina,  and  should  be  allowed  to  judge  in 
each  case  what  risks  they  ought  to  take.  Time  and  again 
the  newspapers  of  Europe  and  America  publish  instances  of 
the  self-sacrificing  devotion  and  heroism  of  locomotive-engi- 
neers who  staid  by  the  engine  when  it  was  necessary  for  the 
welfare  of  the  passengers  that  they  should  do  so.  A  single 
instance  will  answer  for  many: — 

On  October  22,  1882,  the  1.15  p.m.  local  train  of  the 
Pennsylvania  railroad  left  the  Jersey  City  depot  as  usual. 
Every  car  was  crowded,  and  in  the  smoking-car  standing- 
room  was  scarcely  to  be  had.  There  was  no  baggage-car, 
the  tender  of  the  engine  being  attached  directly  to  the 
smoking-car.  Suddenly,  the  door  of  this  car  was  burst  vio- 
lently open,  admitting  a  gust  of  flame  and  smoke,  out  of 
which  engineer  Joseph  A.  Seeds  and  his  fireman  emerged, 
shutting  the  door  behind  them.    They  had  been  driven 


THE  LOCOMOTIVE  AND  ITS  MASTEK.  205 


out  of  the  engine  by  the  flames  which  had  poured  out  of  the 
furnace-door  and  set  the  cab  on  fire. 

Great  excitement  arose;  the  smoking-car  was  immedi- 
ately packed  full  of  terrified  people  eager  to  know  what 
had  happened.  The  engineer  ordered  his  fireman  to  use 
the  lever  of  the  air-brake  in  the  rear  of  the  smoking-car, 
and  stop  the  train;  but  it  was  impossible  for  the  man  to 
stir  an  inch,  so  great  was  the  crush  in  the  aisle.  "  What  is 
to  be  done?  "  was  the  cry.  The  engineer  said  nothing,  but 
was  seen  to  set  his  teeth  hard  as  he  sprang  upon  the  tender 
and  disappeared  through  the  smoke  and  flame.  Presently 
the  train  slackened  speed,  and  then  came  to  a  stop  on  the 
river-bridge.  It  was  an  easy  matter  to  draw  up  water  and 
extinguish  the  fire.  But  the  brave  engineer  was  found 
lying  on  the  tank  of  the  tender,  in  an  unconscious  state ; 
his  clothes  were  burned  from  his  body,  and  it  was  necessary 
to  lift  him  down  with  great  care  to  avoid  removing  the 
skin  from  the  flesh.  He  was  taken  to  the  hospital,  and  died 
in  a  few  days.  You  will  not  find  nobler  heroism  in  the 
world  than  this.  Engineer  Seeds  died  to  save  the  lives  of 
those  passengers,  and  if  they  did  not  provide  for  the  widow 
and  children  he  left  behind  him,  it  is  to  their  everlasting 
shame  and  disgrace.  It  was  suggested  at  the  time  by  the 
New  York  "Tribune"  that  a  purse  be  made  up,  and  we 
will  hope,  for  the  honor  of  human  nature,  that  this  was 
done. 

One  who  dips  a  little  way  into  the  railway  journals  of 
the  West  soon  discovers  the  existence  of  a  curious  kind 
of  railway  yarns,  full  of  enormous  exaggerations,  distor- 
tions and  improbabilities,  highly  colored  with  a  peculiar 
kind  of  rhetoric.  These  yarns,  like  those  of  sailors,  always 
have  such  a  distinctive  stamp  of  improbability  upon  them 


206    WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OE  THE  RAILWAY. 

that  you  recognize  them  at  sight  as  fabrications.  They 
generally  purport  to  have  been  told  by  some  tough  old 
engineer  or  fireman,  and  relate  to  his  terrific  adventures 
by  rail.    But  there  are,  of  course,  a  great  many  genuine 
locomotive  stories  to  be  picked  out  of  the  chaff.    A  writer 
in  "  Lippincott's  Magazine,"  for  instance,  tells  how  a  con- 
ductor was  chased  by  a  locomotive.    The  old  Long  Island 
railroad,  at  the  time  when  the  incident  occurred,  was  a 
single-track  affair  with  numerous  switches  and  sidings. 
One  pitch-dark  night,  when  the  conductor  was  taking  three 
passenger  cars  through  to  Greenport,  and  had  got  about  six 
or  eight  miles  on  his  way,  he  noticed  the  head-light  of  a 
locomotive  in  his  rear.    He  was  thunder-struck  at  the  dis- 
covery, and  as  he  gazed,  his  astonishment  grew  into  deep 
apprehension,  for  he  saw  that  the  locomotive  was  rapidly 
gaining  upon  his  train.    He  went  forward  and  ordered  the 
engineer  to  put  on  more  steam,  and  then  ensued  a  wild 
chase  of  many  miles  through  the  night,  both  train  and 
pursuing  locomotive  tearing  along  at  a  high  rate  of  speed, 
and  throwing   out  showers  of  sparks  from  the  wheels. 
Everybody  on  board  the  cars  believed  the  engineer  of  the 
pursuing  locomotive  to  be  either  mad  or  intoxicated.  At 
last  the  fireman  conceived  the  happy  thought  of  oiling  the 
track  in  the  rear  of  the  train,  since  a  locomotive  can  make 
no  progress  on  greasy  rails.    This  device  saved  the  train 
from  disaster.     The  anointing  of  the  track  with  the  con- 
tents of  two  huge  cans  of  kerosene  for  half  a  mile  soon 
caused  the  head-light  of  the  chasing  locomotive  to  grow 
dim  in  the  distance.     The  train  was  stopped,  and  then 
backed  up  that  the  mystery  might  be  investigated,  the 
conductor  and  engineer,  in  the  meantime,  preparing  to  give 
the  drunken  driver  of  the  "wild"  locomotive  a  merited ~ 


THE  LOCOMOTIVE  AND  ITS  MASTER.  207 


castigation  (in  words).  But  when  they  neared  the  head- 
light a  laughable  scene  was  presented.  "  There  stood  the 
old  '  Ben  Franklin/  puffing  and  snorting  and  pawing  like 
a  mad  bull,  the  driving-wheels  buzzing  around  on  the 
greased  track  like  all  possessed,  but  not  gaining  an  inch." 
Sanding  the  track,  they  bore  down  on  the  old  machine,  but 
no  sign  of  an  engineer  or  fireman  was  to  be  perceived. 
There  was  a  full  head  of  steam  on,  but  the  fires  were 
getting  low.  Pushing  back  to  the  next  station  with  the 
runaway  engine,  the  conductor  sided  his  cars  just  in  time  to 
avoid  the  down  train,  and  was  then  handed  a  despatch 
telling  him  that  the  "Ben  Franklin"  had  broken  loose, 
and  ordering  him  to  switch  it  off  at  Lakeland  and  wreck  it. 
But  the  oiled  track  had  saved  them  that  trouble,  and  had 
also  saved  44  Benjamin"  from  a  smash-up. 

Locomotive  runaways,  such  as  the  foregoing,  are  by  no 
means  rare  occurrences.  Not  long  ago  two  engines  col- 
lided on  a  track  of  the  Boston  and  Maine  railroad,  in 
Tewksbury.  The  shock  opened  the  throttle  valve  of  one  of 
them,  and  as  the  engineer  had  jumped  from  it,  it  stftrted 
down  the  track  alone  toward  Lowell.  Eeaching  the  end  of 
the  track  at  the  Lowell  station,  "  it  overturned  the  bunter  as 
if  it  were  a  mere  wisp  of  straw,  went  ploughing  through 
the  floor  of  the  station  for  a  distance  of  seventy-five  feet, 
and  entered  the  express  office.  It  crashed  through  the 
partition  separating  this  office  from  the  station  quarters, 
and  also  wrecked  one  end  of  the  baggage  room  in  passing. 
As  it  entered  the  express  office,  four  persons  were  present 
and  endeavored  to  escape.  Two  got  out  by  way  of  the 
door.  One  was  behind  the  counter,  and  only  had  time  to 
leap  on  the  desk  when  the  puffing  engine  reached  him.  A 
plank  was  hurled  against  the  door  and  pinned  him  in  close 


208    WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 

quarters,  but  inflicted  only  slight  injuries.  Meanwhile  the 
engine  was  grating  its  head  against  the  brick  wall  which 
adjoined  the  public  sidewalk,  and  tore  out  quite  a  section, 
besides  all  the  windows,  when  fortunately  the  floor  gave 
way,  and  it  fell  into  the  basement,  emitting  clouds  of  steam 
and  smoke.  The  fourth  occupant  of  the  express  office  was 
carried  down  into  the  cellar  with  the  engine  and  debris, 
and  was  completely,  though  lightly  covered,  resting  face 
downward  just  under  the  headlight." 

An  English  journal  some  years  ago  gave  its  readers 
an  entertaining  account  of  a  fight  for  a  locomotive.  The 
machine  had  been  seized  (illegally,  as  the  owner  thought) 
for  debt,  and  sold  for  a  quarter  of  its  value.  The  writer 
in  the  journal,  who  was  the  chief  actor  in  the  adventure, 
tells  the  story  in  the  first  person.  He  received  orders  from 
the  company  by  which  he  was  employed,  to  go  at  once  to  the 
place  where  the  engine  was,  procure  a  number  of  men  and 
horses  from  the  lead  mines  near  at  hand,  remove  the 
machine  on  to  the  main  line  after  the  night  mail  had 
passed,  and  take  her  to  Nantygolyn  station  in  time  to  meet 
the  up  luggage  train  at  2.30  in  the  morning;  then  to 
attach  her  to  that  train  and  so  fetch  her  to  the  company's 
quarters.  Let  us  now  permit  the  hero  of  the  occasion  to 
tell  his  own  story: 

"The  wind  was  rising,  laden  with  occasional  showers,  as 
I  reached  the  brick-field.  The  state  of  affairs  was  worse 
than  I  had  imagined.  The  engine  had  been  left  on  an  ex- 
posed part  of  the  line,  and  where  there  was  a  sharp  curve, 
causing  the  outside  rail  to  be  much  higher  than  the  other. 
Inclining  at  such  a  sharp  angle,  it  had  been  exposed  to  the 
full  fury  of  a  recent  gale,  which  catching  it  at  so  great  a 
disadvantage  had  tilted  it  completely  over,  and  it  now  lay 


THE  LOCOMOTIVE  AKD  ITS  MASTER. 


209 


on  its  side  on  the  embankment,  with  the  hindermost  wheels, 
however,  resting  on,  or  only  partly  off  the  rails.  It  was  a 
small  and  very  light  engine,  and'  had  been  originally  in- 
tended for  the  Crimea.  It  was  a  wild  and  lonely  place 
where  the  brickyard  was  situated.  It  was  just  where  the 
moorland  commenced  and  where  there  was  nothing  to  inter- 
rupt the  eye  as  it  roamed  over  the  purple  flat,  strangely  lit 
up  in  places  by  crimsoning  gleams  and  patches  of  golden 
brown  as  the  light  of  a  stormy  sunset  was  reflected  from  the 
surface  of  a  pool,  or  shone  on  a  lighter  ground  of  dead 
rushes  and  ling.  Beyond  all,  was  a  long  gray  line  which 
could  not  be  mistaken  for  anything  but  what  it  was,  the 
bonny,  open  sea.  If  you  listened  intently  you  could  even 
catch,  borne  on  the  wind,  the  faint  roar  of  the  surf  on  the 
flat,  sandy  shore." 

His  men,  he  goes  on  to  say,  were  duly  employed,  and, 
when  night  came,  rigged  up  a  crane,  and  were  trying  to 
raise  the  fallen  engine,  when  suddenly  they  discovered 
forms  flitting  through  the  darkness  around  them;  they 
were  the  vanguard  of  the  enemy,  the  force  got  together  by 
the  late  purchaser  of  the  engine  for  the  purpose  of  saving 
his  property  from  recaption. 

"'Look  sharp,  lads,  and  get  her  on  the  line  before  they 

come,'  I  cried,  and  lent  a  hand  to  the  ropes  myself.   At  last 

with  a  thud  she  was  righted,  and  then  the  screw-jacks  were 

again  applied  to  lift  her  properly  on  the  rails.    This  was 

done  without  interruption.    The  horses  were  harnessed  to, 

and  she  began  to  move  merrily  enough,  though  a  rattling 

noise  inside  made  it  evident  that  some  of  her  machinery 

was  broken.    I  was  beginning  to  hope  we  might  soon  gain 

the  main  line,  about  half  a  mile  away,  when  over  the  bank 

there  came  some  twenty  or  thirty  men  and  lads.  The 
14 


210    WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 


wheels  were  scotched  before  we  could  prevent  it.  They 
harnessed  a  couple  of  horses  and  half  a  dozen  donkeys  to  the 
other  end  of  the  engine.  Two  tar-barrels  they  had  brought 
with  them  were  set  alight,  and  blazed  furiously,  affording 
plenty  of  light.  I  warned  my  men  not  to  have  recourse  to 
violence,  and  in  this  I  was  seconded  by  the  leader  of  the  op- 
posite side,  who  was,  in  fact,  the  purchaser  of  the  engine. 

"'It  shall  be  a  fair  fight,'  he  said.  '  Let  us  see  which 
can  pull  the  hardest  now,  and  you  take  your  chance  in  the 
law  afterward.1 

"By  mutual  consent  we  unscotched  the  wheels,  and  the 
tournament  began.  First  one  party  gained  a  few  yards, 
then  the  other.  The  animals  lugged  their  very  hardest, 
aided  by  the  men.  The  Englishmen  were  the  strongest, 
although  the  fewest  in  number,  but  the  incline  was  in  favor 
of  the  Welshmen,  and  at  first  it  seemed  as  if  they  would 
triumph  and  drag  the  engine  back  to  where  the  rails  were 
broken  up.  No  blows  passed  between  us,  and  the  good 
humor  shown  by  everyone  surprised  me  much." 

After  a  great  deal  of  lugging,  and  tugging,  and  scotch- 
ing of  wheels,  during  which  neither  party  gained  any 
advantage,  a  bright  idea  occurred  to  the  leader  of  the  com- 
pany's party.  He  went  up  to  one  of  his  men,  and  asked 
him  which  was  the  best  runner  in  their  party. 

"'There  will  be  none  as  good  as  you,  sir;  and  they  be 
all  tired  with  this  pulley-hauley  work.' 

"'Well  then,  I'm  off  to  Nantygolyn  station;  and  I'll 
come  back  with  the  engine  of  the  luggage  train.  Do  you 
see?  Look  to  the  points  at  the  junction.' 

"'Capital,  sir!'  exclaimed  h  e,  as  I  turned  and  dashed 
over  the  bank  and  into  the  narrow  road.  I  had  scarcely 
got  out  of  the  glare  of  the  fire  when  I  was  roughly  collared  by 


THE  LOCOMOTIVE  A1STD  ITS  MASTER.  211 


somebody.  As  he  was  evidently  not  a  friend,  and  there 
was  no  time  for  an  explanation,  even  if  I  had  wished  to 
give  any,  I  placed  my  hand  over  his  shoulder  and  my  arm 
under  his  chin,  and  with  a  sudden  wrench,  taught  me  by  a 
Welsh  collier,  forced  his  head  back  and  left  him  half 
insensible  on  the  ground." 

Covering  the  two  miles  in  about  a  quarter  of  an  hour, 
the  agent  returned  with  the  engine,  which  steamed  slowly 
up  to  the  scene  of  contest. 

"Both  parties  had  drawn  off  their  forces,  and  were 
sitting  and  standing  in  groups  a  little  apart,  while  rude 
chaff  was  freely  interchanged.  The  firelight  cast  long  and 
wavering  shadows  around,  and  made  the  outer  darkness 
look  blacker  and  more  impenetrable  than  ever.  The  rain 
still  came  steadily  down  and  hissed  on.,  the  blazing  fires, 
while  the  wet  ground  was  trodden  ankle-deep. 

"Such  a  yell  arose  after  the  first  astonished  silence, 
from  our  opponents,  answered  back  by  a  ringing  cheer 
from  my  men.  The  cattle  were  quickly  unloosened  and 
ridden  off  out  of  the  way  by  the  men.  The  ropes  were 
quickly  transferred  to  the  big  engine,  and  in  the  midst  of  a 
general  melee  the  two  locomotives  moved  slowly  off,  drag- 
ging their  horses  and  donkeys  backward.  Seeing  the 
uselessness  of  employing  brute  force  against  steam,  they 
cut  their  ropes,  and  we  moved  triumphantly  off,  followed 
by  a  volley  of  oaths  and  stones.  One  of  the  latter  struck 
me  on  the  cheek,  laying  it  open  and  knocking  me  back  on 
the  coals  in  the  tender.  It  w7as  as  much  as  I  could  do 
to  restrain  my  men  from  jumping  off  and  charging  them. 
Well,  that  is  how  I  fought  for  and  won  the  locomotive." 


CHAPTER  XIV. 


THE  TRACK. 


Sling  up  the  bugle !  harp  and  lute, 
Let  every  dusty  string  be  mute, 
Be  still  the  drum  and  dumb  the  flute, 
While  trumpets  blow  so  brave  and  loud, 
They  rally  like  a  flag  unfurled 
And  wake  and  warn  the  startled  world  — 
The  trumpets  of  the  "  Flying  Cloud." 


HE  womb  of  a  steel  rail  is  the  Bessemer  "  converter." 


When  the  roasted  iron  comes  out  of  the  blast  furnace 
as  pig  iron,  it  is  cast  into  the  huge  converter  to  be  made 
into  steel  by  an  admixture  of  carbon.  But  it  already  has 
some  carbon  in  it,  and  we  want  first  to  get  rid  of  that, 
because  we  don't  know  exactly  how  much  it  is,  and  then 
we  can  add  our  own  carbon  in  carefully  measured  amounts. 
They  remove  the  carbon  from  the  pig  iron  by  blowing  air 
through  the  converter,  for  the  oxygen  of  the  air  unites 
with  the  carbon  and  passes  off  with  it  in  a  long  body  of 
flame  of  a  surpassingly  beautiful  and  dazzling  whiteness. 
The  process  takes  twenty  minutes,  and  all  the  while  the 
foundry  is  filled  with  the  heavy  roar  of  the  blast,  the  vol- 
canic undertone  of  the  rumbling  metal,  and  showers  of 
sparks  blown  out  of  the  aperture  in  the  vessel  like  tiny 
rockets  or  scintillating  stars.  Do  you  see  that  man  watch- 
ing the  terrible  white  flame  with  a  spectroscope?  He  is 
anxiously  looking  out  for  the  moment  when  the  decarbon- 


Benj.  F.  Taylor,  "The  Flying  Heralds. 


THE  TKACK. 


213 


izing  process  is  complete,  for  then  the  spiegeleisen  must  be 
added,  and  the  gold  liquor  poured  glowing  hot  into  moulds. 
The  moulded  masses  are  made  into  "  blooms "  by  being 
repeatedly  passed  through  the  jaws  of  a  mill,  and  then 
they  are  ready  to  be  stretched  out  into  rails.  It  is  a  weird 
sight  to  see  men  handling  the  long  red-hot  rails  in  a  foun- 
dry at  night.  They  look  like  demons  in  the  red  glare  as 
they  draw  the  long  rails  from  the  furnace  with  tongs,  and 
run  to  and  fro  with  them  in  the  shadowy  light  —  their 
blows  rapid  and  their  movements  excited,  as  if  they  were 
forging  some  hellish  machine  for  the  torture  of  the  damned. 
But  we  do  them  wrong;  every  blow  they  fetch  forges 
another  link  in  the  iron  bonds  that  are  uniting  the  nations 
of  the  wrorld  together  in  peace  and  good  will.  The  rail- 
forger  as  well  as  the  rail-splitter  deserves  our  respect. 

On  the  subject  of  Gauges  there  is  a  word  to  be  said. 
Most  of  the  railroads  of  the  world  have  a  gauge  of  four 
feet,  eight  and  a  half  inches.  This  was  the  width  of 
the  colliery  tramways  in  England,  and  was  adopted  by 
Stephenson  as  the  gauge  of  his  first  roads.  It  is  now  made 
compulsory  to  use  the  four-feet,  eight- and- a- half- inch  gauge 
in  England,  Belgium,  France,  Italy,  and  Germany,  and  it  is 
everywhere  called  the  standard  gauge.  Unfortunately  in 
the  United  States  there  are  all  sorts  of  gauges,  although  the 
standard  predominates,  Some  roads  adopt  the  expedient  of 
lifting  through  trains  bodily  from  the  trucks  and  running 
under  them  the  trucks  of  the  connecting  road.  A  through 
train  from  St.  Petersburg  to  Paris,  in  Europe,  has  recently 
been  fitted  up  with  adjustable  wheels,  suited  for  any  gauge. 
•The  broadest  gauge  ever  used  for  a  railroad  was  that 
adopted  by  Brunei  for  the  Great  Western  in  England.  As 


214    WONDERS  AID  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 


the  rival  of  Stephenson,  he  must  do  anything  but  imitate 
him;  so  he  built  a  road  seven  feet  in  width,  claiming  that 
travel  on  such  a  road  was  safer,  swifter,  steadier,  and  more 
comfortable  than  on  the  standard  road ;  besides  that,  more 
powerful  engines,  and  cars  of  greater  capacity,  could  be  em- 
ployed. But  the  expense  of  such  a  gauge  proved  fatal  to 
its  profitable  use,  and  after  twenty  years  of  trial  Brunei's 
broad  gauge  gave  place  to  a  narrower  one.  The  same  thing 
has  happened  to  the  Atlantic  and  Great  Western  railroad  in 
this  country,  and  it  seems  probable,  or  possible,  that  the 
Erie,  the  Ohio  and  Mississippi,  and  the  Grand  Trunk  lines 
will  fallow  suit. 

The  first  advocate  of  a  narrower  gauge  than  the  stand- 
ard was  Eobert  Fairlie.  The  Denver  and  Rio  Grande  was 
the  first  narrow-gauge  track  laid;  and  since  that,  sixteen 
thousand  miles  of  the  narrow  roads  have  been  built  in  this 
country.  The  narrowest  of  practical  narrow  railroads  thus 
far  built  was  constructed  in  1874,  by  Mr.  G.  E.  Mansfield, 
the  railway  constructor,  for  his  own  use,  at  Hyde  Park, 
Massachusetts.    Its  width  was  only  ten  inches. 

The  Stations  of  the  early  railways  in  this  country  were 
mere  sheds  open  on  two  or  more  sides  to  the  wind  and  dust. 
Later,  in  the  larger  cities,  huge  brick  barracks,  than  whicb 
nothing  could  be  more  dismal,  served  as  points  of  embarka- 
tion and  arrival  for  passengers.  There  is  still  little  of 
attractiveness  or  homelike  elegance  about  the  stations  of 
Great  Britain  and  America;  and  all  the  poetry  connected 
with  these  disagreeable  abodes  is  -  to  be  found  outside, 
where,  in  watching  the  coming  and  going  of  the  swift 
trains,  one  finds  much  to  admire,  especially  when  the 
colored  signal  lamps  are  swinging  at  night,  and  the  electric 


THE  TRACK. 


215 


lights  are  throwing  their  intensely  defined,  almost  solid, 
shadows  around.* 

There  is  no  good  reason  why  railway  stations  should  be 
such  lugubrious,  hideous  places.  A  recent  traveller  on  the 
Continent  remarks  that  the  stations  of  Switzerland  are 
built  in  the  style  of  picturesque  cottages  with  wide  eaves, 
ornamental  cornices,  and  graceful  balconies;  most  of  them 
are  surrounded  by  little  gardens,  and  some  "  are  fairly  en- 
chanting with  their  wealth  of  climbing  vines."  A  fountain 
dancing  to  its  own  music  in  the  midst  of  the  blossoms  is 
not  unfrequently  seen.  At  Milan  the  passenger  station  is 
a  crystal  palace  with  frescoes  of  Italian  masters  upon  its 
walls,  while  the  baggage  of  travellers  is  wheeled  over 
noiseless  floors  upon  trucks  with  rubber  tires.  In  Florence 
a  railway  waiting-room  is  furnished  in  black  walnut  and 
crimson  plush;  a  whole  conservatoryv  of  flowers  blossoms 
under  the  wide  skylight,  and  marble  statuary  is  embowered 
in  orange-trees,  while  huge  multiplying  mirrors  fill  up  the 
panels  in  the  walls.  At  Verviers,  a  little  Belgian  town  on 
the  French  frontier,  the  walls  of  the  station  are  hung  with 

*  Here  is  Dickens's  picture  of  Mugby  Junction,  painted  as  if  by  a  somnam- 
bule: 

"  A  place  replete  with  shadowy  shapes,  this  Mugby  Junction,  in  the  black 
hours  of  the  four-and-twenty.  Mysterious  goods  trains,  covered  with  palls  [in 
England  they  cover  their  open  freight  cars  with  black  tarpaulins],  and  gliding 
on  like  vast,  weird  funerals,  conveying  themselves  guiltily  away  from  the  pres- 
ence of  the  few  lighted  lamps,  as  if  their  freight  had  come  to  a  secret  and  un- 
lawful end.  Half-miles  of  coal  pursuing  in  a  detective  manner,  following  when 
they  lead,  stopping  when  they  stop,  backing  when  they  back.  Red-hot  embers 
showering  out  upon  the  ground,  down  this  dark  avenue  and  down  the  other,  as 
if  torturing  fires  were  being  raked  clear;  concurrently,  shrieks  and  groans  and 
grinds  invading  the  ear,  as  if  the  tortured  were  at  the  height  of  their  suffering. 
Iron-barred  cages  full  of  cattle  jangling  by  midway,  the  drooping  beasts  with 
horns  entangled,  eyes  frozen  with  terror,  and  mouths  too:  at  least  they  have 
long  icicles  (or  what  seem  so)  hanging  from  their  lips.  Unknown  languages  in 
the  air,  conspiring  in  red,  green,  and  white  characters.  An  earthquake,  accom- 
panied with  thunder  and  lightning,  going  up  express  to  London." 


216    WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 

dark-green  velvet  paper;  the  long  windows  that  reach  to 
the  floor  are  curtained  with  heavy  damask,  and  full-length 
portraits  in  oil  are  hung  upon  the  walls.  The  nearest  ap- 
proach to  all  this  in  America  has  been  made  by  the  Boston 
and  Maine  railroad,  which  allows  its  rural  station-agents 
ten  dollars  a  year  for  seeds,  plants,  etc.,  and  offers  annual 
prizes  of  twenty  dollars,  thirty  dollars,  and  fifty  dollars, 
each,  to  those  whose  stations  are  most  tastefully  and  care- 
fully kept.  The  directors  of  a  railroad  running  south  from 
Philadelphia  keep  a  salaried  gardener  to  attend  to  the 
grounds  about  the  various  stations.  These  two  instances 
are  the  only  ones  that  have  fallen  under  the  writer's  notice. 

No  subject  connected  with  railways  is  so  little  under- 
stood by  the  public  in  general  as  that  of  Signals.  And  there 
is  good  reason  for  its  ignorance,  since  there  is  the  widest 
discrepancy  in  the  signal-practice  of  different  roads.  The 
various  means  of  signalling  a  railway  train  are, —  hand 
and  lamp  signals,  bell-cord  signals,  whistle  signals,  sta- 
tionary fixed  signals,  switch  targets,  danger  signals  for 
rear  protection,  torpedo  signals,  the  telegraphic  despatch, 
and  the  automatic  electric  signal.  A  pretty  generally  un- 
derstood code  of  signals  in  America  is  the  following:  "Go 
ahead  " —  an  up-and-down  motion  of  the  hand,  or  parting 
the  hands  outward  from  the  level  of  the  face;  "Stop"— a 
motion  crosswise  with  the  track,  or  a  downward  motion  of 
the  hand;  "Back  up"— moving  the  arm  in  the  arc  of  a 
circle  over  the  head,  at  the  same  time  twisting  the  body 
until  the  hand  is  pointed  almost  in  the  direction  the  train 
is  to  move.  "Train  parted"— a  motion  in  a  vertical  circle 
at  arm's  length  across  the  track,  given  continuously  until 
answered  by  the  engineer.  One  blast  of  the  whistle  means 
"  stop,"  or  "  down  brakes";  two  blasts,  "  go  ahead,"  or  "  off 


THE  TRACK. 


217 


brakes";  continued  whistling  means  "danger";  the  cattle- 
alarm  consists  of  a  succession  of  short,  sharp  blasts.  A  red 
flag  waved  on  the  track  means  "danger";  if  stuck  up 
beside  the  track,  "danger  ahead  ";  carried  unfurled  on  the 
engine  it  means  "  another  engine  is  on  the  way."  A  green 
flag  denotes  "  caution,  proceed  with  care " ;  a  white  flag 
means  "safety,  track  clear";  one  torpedo-signal  indicates 
"  danger  ";  two  torpedoes,  "  caution  ";  one  pull  of  the  bell- 
cord  means  "start";  when  the  train  is  running  some  con- 
ductors give  one  pull  for  "  stop,"  and  some  give  two;  three 
pulls  means  "  back  up."  Usage  differs  so  much  in  the  case 
of  signals  for  rear,  protection,  and  many  kinds  of  stationary 
fixed  signals,  that  no  general  rules  can  be  given  for  these. 

The  mechanical  signalling  done  by  railroads  may  be  con- 
veniently classed  under  two  heads, —  (1)  telegraphic  work 
for  long  distances,  and  (2)  station,  or  switch  work.  It  was 
some  time  after  the  invention  of  the  telegraph  before  rail- 
roads could  be  got  to  adopt  the  new  invention.  The  first 
to  employ  it  for  the  purpose  of  controlling  the  movements 
of  trains  was  Superintendent  Charles  Minot  of  the  New 
York  and  Erie  railroad,  in  1850.  Previous  to  this,  the 
chronometer,  the  hand-flag,  and  a  few  fixed  signals  were 
the  only  means  employed  in'  this  country  for  the  avoidance 
of  collisions.  The  first  fixed  railway  signal  in  England  was 
that  adopted  by  the  Grand  Junction  railroad,  in  1838.  It 
consisted  of  a  disk  fixed  on  a  spindle,  with  a  handle  to  turn 
it;  a  lamp  took  its  place  by  night,  the  whole  constituting 
merely  a  danger-signal. 

It  suggestively  marks  the  additional  element  of  safety 
afforded  in  this  day  by  the  use  of  the  telegraph,  to  read,  in 
an  old  American  work  on  railroad  accidents,  of  a  catastro- 
phe that  happened  to  a  train  on  the  Lowell  and  Nashua 


218    WOHDERS  AtfD  CUBIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 

railroad,  on  July  5,  1841.  There  were  a  large  number  of 
persons  in  Nashua  on  that  day,  who  had  been  celebrating 
"  the  Fourth  "  and  were  anxious  to  get  to  Lowell  by  the 
last  downward  train  of  cars.  Accordingly,  the  superinten- 
dent at  Nashua  directed  a  conductor  of  one  of  the  trains 
down  to  inform  the  superintendent  at  Lowell  that  he  must 
not  send  the  last  upward  train  as  usual.  By  some  neglect 
this  information  was  not  received,  and  the  train  was  sent 
up.  The  consequence  was  that  as  the  two  trains  were 
going  round  a  curve  at  "great  speed"  they  collided, 
smashed  their  engines  and  "severely  wounded,  four  per- 
sons, one  of  whom  it  was  thought  would  not  survive  the 
accident."  We  may  smile  at  the  low  rate  of  speed  that 
must  have  been  in  vogue  when  the  collision  of  two  trains 
of  cars  going  at  "  a  high  rate  of  speed  "  resulted  in  so  com- 
paratively slight  a  calamity  as  this;  but  the  incident  points 
the  contrast  between  that  day  and  this  in  the  matter  of  sig- 
nals. If  the  telegraph  had  been  in  existence,  with  the 
present  accurate  system  of  checks  applied- to  train-despatch- 
ing, no  accident  would  have  occurred. 

The  strain  of  responsibility  upon  the  train-despatcher  of 
a  great  railroad  in  this  day  seems  almost  unendurable  to  an 
outsider.  There  he  sits  in  his  office  at  headquarters,  like  a 
magician,  and,  gazing  on  his  chart,  directs  by  the  aid  of  a 
telegraphic  assistant  the  movements  of  a  whole  army  of 
flying  trains  scattered  along  the  tracks  for  a  thousand 
miles.  They  dare  not  move  without  his  order,  but  as 
soon  as  the  far-whispered  word  is  received  they  start  on, 
and  woe  to  the  despatcher,  if  he  has"  lessened  for  a  moment 
the  lynx-eyed  vigilance  that  is  the  price  of  his  position  and 
of  the  safety  of  the  trains.  Before  his  eyes  is  a  chart  con- 
taining the  numbers  of  every  train  moving  on  the  road  at 


THE  TRACK. 


219 


a  given  time;  at  all  hours  of  the  day  and  night  come  tele- 
grams from  the  local  stations,  announcing  the  number  and 
moment  of  arrival  and  departure  of  every  train,  and  this 
information  is  at  once  written  on  the  chart,  which  also  has 
printed  upon  it  the  names  of  all  the  stations,  the  number 
of  miles  from  one  to  another,  and  the  time  required  to  pass 
between  them.  Having,  then,  all  this  information  before 
him,  the  despatcher  proceeds  (if  he  uses  the  Double-Order 
System)  to  telegraph  at  the  same  time  his  commands  to  the 
two  trains  that  are  waiting  to  pass  over  the  same  track, 
each  in  opposite  directions.  To  one  train  he  says  "stay,1' 
and  to  another  "  go."  Both  conductors  repeat  the  message 
to  him;  if  they  differ  in  understanding  it,  they  are  set 
right;  if  the  despatcher  himself  has  erred,  he  is  twice  re- 
minded of  it,  and  is  given  a  chance  to  correct  his  mistake 
before  sending  his  final  order. 

Now  suppose  a  train  is  wrecked:  immediately  every- 
thing is  disarranged;  the  despatcher  must  stop  perhaps 
half  a  dozen  trains  scattered  all  along  the  line  from 
five  to  fifty  miles  from  the  accident;  and  if  one  were 
watching  the  scene  from  a  balloon,  he  would  see  what 
looked  almost  like  the  movement  of  connected  automatic 
machinery  along  the  line  of  track,  so  quickly  would  freight 
trains  be  seen  to  roll  out  upon  sidings,  and  passenger 
trains  stop  short  where  they  were,  in  obedience  to  the 
orders  received  on  the  wires.  The  obstruction  having 
been  removed,  the  train-despatcher  sets  his  flyers  in  motion 
again  on  his  iron  chess-board,  watching  their  movements 
with  the  utmost  intensity  of  concentration. 

The  system  just  described  is  used  on  single-track  roads. 
On  doiible-track  railways  the  somewhat  similar  block 


220    WONDERS  A^D  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 


system  is  used.*  Block-working  is  a  system  of  dividing 
up  a  track,  or  road,  into  a  certain  number  of  sections  of 
such  length  as  may  be  most  convenient  for  traffic,  and 
insuring  that  only  one  engine,  or  train  of  cars,  shall  be 
on  one  division  at  any  given  time.  This  is  accomplished 
in  England,  and  on  such  American  roads  as  the  Penn- 
sylvania Central,  by  having  train-despatchers,  or  local 
telegraphers,  at  every  block-station,  and  no  train  dare 
enter  upon  the  section  until  it  has  received  information 
from  the  telegrapher  that  the  track  is  clear  for  its  whole 
length.  In  the  present  state  of  automatic  electric  signal- 
systems,  this  English  plan  is  the  safest,  although  more 
expensive.  It  is  hoped,  however,  that  automatic  signals 
may  be  so  perfected  as  everywhere  to  supersede  the 
English  system. 

The  automatic  apparatus  operates  the  signals  by  means 
of  the  rail  circuit,  with  a  closed  circuit  for  keeping  the 
signal  at  safety.  A  broken  rail  will  put  the  signal  to 
danger,  as  well  as  the  entrance  of  a  train  upon  the  section. 
The  signals  have  an  overlap  of  one  thousand  feet,  and 
there  must  be  at  least  that  distance  between  trains.  The 
greater  the  density  of  traffic,  the  shorter  the  block  sections 
should  be.  The  signal  of  the  automatic  apparatus  is 
usually  a  pivoted  disk  placed  upon  a  high  pole,  and 
painted  with  one  face  red  and  the  other  white.  The 
signal  most  used  in  Great  Britain  (and  extensively  in 
America)  is  the  semaphore  (ay/ia,  a  sign,  and  <p£peiv,  to 
bear);  it  is  a  tall,  vertical  post,  with  movable  arms  and 
lights  near  the  top. 

In  Great  Britain  they  used  to  have  what  was  called  the 

*  Probably  so  named  from  the  facility  it  affords  for  blocking  the  line  by 
signalling  back. 


THE  TRACK. 


221 


"Train  Staff  and  Ticket  System,"  for  single-track  roads. 
This  was  a  block  system,  too.  The  road  was  divided  into 
sections,  each  of  which  had  a  staff,  or  truncheon,  usually  of 
a  different  color  or  length.  When  an  engine-driver  appeared 
at  a  station  he  was  not  allowed  to  proceed  over  the  next 
section  unless  he  received  the  staff  from  the  station-master. 
If  he  did  not  receive  it,  the  inference  necessarily  was  that 
some  other  engine-driver  was  then  carrying  it  in  one  or 
the  other  direction  over  the  section.  As  there  was  only 
one  staff,  and  a  ticket  of  permission  was  given  the  driver 
along  with  the  staff,  the  system  evidently  insured  perfect 
safety.  But  it  was  a  clumsy  and  primitive  method, — too 
much  like  the  notched-stick  system  of  notation  to  suit  the 
fancy  of  railroad  officials  after  the  invention  of  telegraphy. 

But  it  is  at  the  signal  and  interlocking  towers  and 
cabins  of  the  great  stations  and  railroad  junctions  that  the 
most  marvellous  achievements  of  mechanical  ingenuity  are 
revealed.  In  a  little  glass  box  hung  over  the  middle 
interior  of  the  Grand  Central  Depot  in  New  York  sits  a 
magician  who  controls  the  entire  activity  of  the  place.  He 
is  surrounded  by  the  implements  of  his  magic, —  broken 
lightning,  electric  knobs,  regulator-clock,  and  telegraphic 
instruments;  and  it  is  at  his  beck  and  nod  that  the  two 
hundred  and  fifty  trains  a  day  come  and  go.  So  in  London 
there  is  a  signal-station  called  by  railroad  men  "  The  Hole 
in  the  Wall,"  where  the  railroads  of  all  Southern  England 
converge  upon  two  lines  of  track  The  hole  in  the  wall  is 
the  lookout  for  the  signalman;  he  too  is  surrounded  by 
mysterious  agencies;  and  bells  ring,  hands  move,  huge  iron 
bars  creak  and  groan,  and  automatic  signs  start  suddenly 
forth  from  the  wall  to  inform  the  operator  that  the  swift  ex- 
press or  mail  below  awaits  his  permission  to  enter  or  depart. 


222    WOKDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 


The  interlocking  system  of  switches  is,  to  state  the 
matter  in  a  few  words,  the  complicated  massing  of  a  large 
number  of  switch-levers  in  one  cabin  or  gallery,  and  con- 
necting them  by  locking  safety  bars  which  permit  them 
to  occupy  certain  unalterable  positions  only.*  The  plan  is 
such  that  there  can  be  no  possible  contradiction  between 
the  state  of  the  switch  and  the  signal  given.  It  has  been 
said  that .  if  a  piano  were  constructed  in  such  a  way  that 
the  operator  could  strike  on  it  harmonious  chords  only,  it 
would  resemble  the  interlocking  system  of  signals.  At  the 
Cannon  Street  station  in  London  there  are  nearly  seventy 
point  and  signal-levers  concentrated  in  one  signal  house, 
and  the  "  number  of  combinations  which  would  be  possible 
if  all  the  signal  and  point-levers  were  not  interlocked  can 
be  expressed  only  by  millions.  Of  these,  only  eight  hun- 
dred and  eight  combinations  are  safe,  and  by  the  interlock- 
ing apparatus,  these  eight  hundred  and  eight  combinations 
are  rendered  possible,  and  all  the  others  impossible.  If  a 
man  were  to  go  blindfold  into  this  signal-house,  he  might 
so  far  as  accordance  between  switches  and  signals  is  con- 
cerned, be  allowed  to  pull  over  any  lever  at  random."  These 
are  the  words  of  Charles  F.  Adams,  Jr.,  who  further  says: 
"It  may  well  be  questioned  whether  the  world  anywhere 
else  furnishes  an  illustration  so  apt  and  dramatic  of  the 
great  mechanical  achievements  of  recent  times  as  that  to  be 
seen  during  the  busy  hours  of  any  week-day  from  the  sig- 
nal and  interlocking  galleries  which  span  the  tracks  as  they 
enter  the  Charing  Cross  or  Cannon  Street  stations  in  Lon- 

■  * Barry's  work  on  "Railway  Appliances "  contains  the  best  technical  and 
detailed  explanation  of  the  block  and  the  interlocking  systems.  See  also 
C.  F.  Adams,  Jr.'s  work  on  "Railway  Accidents.''1  The  interlocking  appa- 
ratus has  been  recently  introduced  into  the  United  States,  the  machinery  of 
the  Union  Switch  and  Signal  Company  being  found  on  many  of  our  railroads. 


THE  TEACK. 


223 


don.  Below  and  in  front  of  the  galleries  the  trains  glide 
to  and  fro,  coming  suddenly  into  sight  from  beyond  the 
bridges,  and  as  suddenly  disappearing, —  winding  swiftly  in 
and  out,  and  at  times  four  of  them  running  side  by  side  on 
as  many  tracks,  but  in  both  directions;  —  the  whole  making 
up  a  swiftly  shifting  maze  of  complex  movement,  under  the 
influence  of  which  a  head  unaccustomed  to  the  sight  grows 
actually  giddy.  Yet  it  is  all  done  so  quietly  and  smoothly, 
with  such  an  absence  of  haste  and  nervousness  on  the  part 
of  the  stolid  operators  in  charge  that  it  is  not  easy  to  decide 
which  most  to  wonder  at,  the  almost  inconceivable  magni- 
tude and  despatch  of  the  train  movement,  or  the  perfection 
of  the  appliances  which  make  it  possible." 

In  a  similar  strain  writes  Mr.  W.  J.  Still  man  in  "  The 
Century":  "Neither  the  sounds  nor  the  sights  of  London 
impressed  me  as  did  its  labyrinth  of  railways;  no  other  evi- 
dence of  the  power  and  intelligence  of  England  has  ever 
seemed  to  me  like  this  stupendous  accumulation  of  engi- 
neering accomplishment.  *  *  *  If  you  want  to  see 
what  the  traffic  of  London  is  like,  go  to  Clapham  Junction 
where  the  great  railway  systems  connect.  The  rails  lie 
together  like  the  wires  of  a  piano.  System  and  organiza- 
tion have  done  their  best,  and  sixteen  hundred  trains  a  day 
pass  and  repass  with  safety.  It  is  a  bewilderment.  In  and 
out,  coming,  going,  slow  trains  and  fast  trains;  one  side  of 
you  halts  a  train,  and  while  you  watch  its  wheels  slowing, 
an  express  rushes  past  on  the  other  side  like  a  tornado  of 
iron.  ■  *  *  *  It  is  a  saying  of  the  denizens  about  Clap- 
ham  Junction  that,  on  the  average,  one  man  is  killed  every 
six  weeks.  One  wonders,  after  having  watched  the  traffic 
a  half  hour,  that  some  one  is  not  killed  every  day.  Look 
cityward  and  see  the  trains  flying  —  diverging  eastward, 


224    WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 


westward,  northward,  line  under  line  three  deep,  crossing 
each  other,  diving  under,  or  going  over,  but  never  on  the 
same  level,  and  then  sweeping,  by  long  curves,  round  the 
huge  circumference  of  suburban  London,  a  girdle  of  iron, 
meeting,  crossing,  uniting,  and  separating  again  on  the 
opposite  side." 


CHAPTER  XV. 


THE  TRAIN. 

rpHE  most  important  thing  about  a  car  is  its  wheel,  and 
~L  a  car- wheel  is  not,  as  might  be  expected,  an  easy  thing 
to  make.  The  processes  involved  in  its  manufacture  are 
intricate  and  delicate  in  the  extreme.  The  nicest  point  is  to 
get  a  hard  "  run  "  or  "  tread  "  (the  part  that  runs  upon  the 
rail).  The  method  now  used  is  called  "  chilling,"  and  was 
invented  by  a  Philadelphian  in  1847.  It  is  a  process  analo- 
gous to  "  tempering."  The  whole  wheel  is  cast  from  the 
same  metal  in  one  pouring,  but  the  outer  portion  of  the 
mould  consists  of  a  ring  of  iron  which  has  previously  been 
turned  upon  a  lathe  to  form  the  flange  and  tread  of  the 
wheel.  Now  when  the  molten  iron  is  poured  into  the  sand- 
mould,  that  portion  of  it  which  flows  out  to  the  circumfer- 
ence and  comes  in  contact  with  the  iron  ring  is  instantly 
chilled,  congealed,  and  crystallized  to  a  depth  of  about  half 
an  inch  in  beautiful  parallel  filaments,  as  white  as  silver 
and  nearly  as  hard  as  diamond.  This  happens  because  the 
cold  iron  is  a  better  conductor  of  heat  than  the  sand.  All 
iron  does  not  possess  this  invaluable  chilling  property.  It 
has  been  discovered  that  silicon  in  just  the  right  proportion 
is  a  necessary  ingredient  in  good  chilling-iron;  and  so  nice 
must  be  the  amount  of  this  element,  that  it  has  often  hap- 
pened that  an  entire  day's  work  of  several  hundred  men 
has  been  rendered  useless  by  an  admixture  with  the  iron  of 
one-half  of  one  per  cent  of  silicon  in  excess  of  the  requisite 
15  225 


226    WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 


amount.  The  chilling  subjects  the  molecular  structure  of 
the  wheels  to  an  immense  strain,  and  to  correct  this  they 
are  annealed  by  swinging  them  while  glowing  hot  into 
heated  pits,  or  burying  them  in  hot  sand.  After  several 
days  have  passed,  it  is  found  that  the  molecules  have  slowly 
arranged  themselves  in  their  natural  position,  and  the 
strain  is  entirely  removed. 

Paper  is  about  the  last  thing  one  would  have  thought  of 
as  material  for  a  car-  wheel;  yet  it  is  very  serviceable  for 
the  purpose,  and  has  been  extensively  used  in  this  country. 
The  "  Railway  Age "  car,  described  on  a  previous  page, 
has  paper  wheels  with  steel  tires.  The  disk  of  paper,  used  in 
the  manufacture  of  a  wheel,  is  subjected  to  a  pressure  of  a 
ton  and  a  half  to  the  square  inch.  Among  the  advantages 
claimed  for  the  wheel  are  these:  it  is  comparatively  noise- 
less, and  it  does  not  shrink  or  spring  with  the  weather. 

After  the  wheel,  the  most  important  things  about  a  car 
are  the  coupler,  buffer,  and  platform.  The  sills  and  the 
platforms  of  most  of  the  early  American  cars  (but  not  the 
earliest;  see  the  picture  on  page  67)  were  on  different  levels, 
so  that  the  line  of  resistance  was  not  the  line  of  great- 
est strength.  The  consequence  was  that  when  collisions 
occurred,  telescoping,  with  all  its  terrible  accompaniments, 
was  of  the  most  frequent  occurrence.  Miller,  the  inventor 
of  the  platform,  coupling,  and  spring  buffer  that  go  by  his 
name,  simply  applied  to  cars  the  well  known  principle  just 
spoken  of, —  that  the  line  of  resistance  should  be  the  line  of 
greatest  strength.  In  other  words,  he  elevated  the  platform 
to  a  level  with  the  car-sills,  and  coupled  each  pair  of  cars 
compactly  and  strongly  together,  so  that  now,  on  railroads 
using  this  platform,  telescoping  is  never  heard  of.  The 
Miller  coupling  consists  of  two  spring  hooks,  or  massive 


THE  TEAIK. 


227 


clasps  of  iron,  that  are  automatic  in  closing,  and  are  un- 
clasped by  a  hand-worked  vertical  lever  attached  to  the 
railing  of  the  platform. 

When  the  stubborn  prejudices  of  a  railway  company 
have  been  so  far  softened  that  they  decide  to  adopt  the 
Miller  platform,  they  generally  go  farther  and  fit  up  their 
trains  with  the  Westinghouse  atmospheric  brake,  one  of  the 
most  beautiful  pieces  of  mechanism  ever  invented.  The 
first  patent  of  George  Westinghouse  was  in  1869,  and  now 
the  brake  is  used  on  nearly  all  the  chief  roads  of  Europe 
and  America.  The  invention  does  away  with  the  old  wheel 
brakeman  completely,  since  the  entire  train  of  car's  can  be 
stopped  almost  instantly  by  a  simple  turn  of  the  finger  and 
thumb  of  the  engineer.  A  little  steam-engine,  affixed  to 
the  side  of  the  locomotive,  between  the  driving-wheels, 
operates  an  air-pump  immediately  beneath  it,  by  means  of 
which  air  is  compressed  into  a  large  cylinder  placed  under 
the  cab.  From  this  cylinder  a  line  of  air-pipes  runs  back 
underneath  the  cars,  connecting  with  a  smaller  cylinder 
under  the  centre  of  each  car-floor.  When  a  train  is  made  up, 
the  air-.pipes  of  the  cars  are  coupled  by  rubber  tubes  fitted 
at  the  ends  with  metallic  valves,  which  are  so  arranged  that 
when  the  two  half- valves  are  joined  they  automatically  open 
and  thus  complete  a  continuous  air-tube  extending  beneath 
the  entire  train.  When  the  tubes  are  uncoupled  each  valve 
automatically  closes.  Hence  it  follows  that  the  valve  at  the 
rear  of  the  train  is  always  closed.  Now  suppose  that  by 
some  accident  a  train  should  part  in  the  middle  after  the 
engineer  had  applied  the  brakes,  and  suppose  that  at  the 
same  time  one  of  the  cars  thus  detached  from  the  locomo- 
tive should  jump  the  track, — the  compressed  air  admitted 
to  the  cylinder  beneath  the  derailed  car  before  the  uncoup- 


228    WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 


ling  occurred  would  still  continue  to  act  with  full  force 
upon  the  brakes,  and  would  stop  the  car  in  a  very  short 
time.  The  forward  cars  might  all  plunge  down  with  the 
engine  through  a  broken  bridge,  or  over  a  precipice,  and 
yet  the  rear  cars  be  brought  to  a  stop  by  their  self-acting 
brakes,  before  any  accident  should  occur.  It  is  admirable 
to  see  how  quickly  a  train  is  stopped  by  this  delicate  brake. 
In  1871  a  test-case  was  made  on  a  train  of  the  Kansas 
Pacific  road,  and  it  was  found  that  the  train  when  going  at 
the  rate  of  forty-five  miles  an  hour  could  be  stopped  by  the 
Westinghouse  brake  within  a  distance  of  two  hundred  and 
ten  feet,  or  about  four  car  lengths. 

An  amusing  incident  once  happened  on  the  Erie  rail- 
road in  connection  with  the  atmospheric  brake.  A  train 
going  westward  was  twice  brought  to  a  sudden  and  inexpli- 
cable halt  by  the  application  of  the  air  brakes.  When  the 
train  reached  Hornell,  and  while  the  car-inspector  was 
going  his  rounds,  tapping  the  wheels  to  test  their  soundness, 
suddenly  he  perceived  the  brakes  to  be  again  turned  on 
with  the  well  known  and  unmistakable  "  sizzing  "  sound. 
A  conference  of  the  train  men  was  now  called,  and  some 
one  suggested  that  a  sealed  express  car  be  opened.  This 
was  done,  and  lo  and  behold!  the  mystery  was  cleared  up. 
The  car  contained  a  baby  elephant  that  had  been  consigned 
to  a  Chicago  showman,  and  his  rajahship  had  been  amusing 
himself  by  pulling  the  air-brake  rope  which  ran  through 
his  car. 

The  conductor's  bell-rope  is'  an  American  invention. 
The  idea  was  first  conceived  by  William  Hambright, 
engineer,  in  1833,  on  the  old  horse-power  railroad  between 
Lancaster  and  Philadelphia,  and  afterward  a  conductor  on 
the  Pennsylvania  Central.     Hambright  affixed  a  common 


THE  TRADsT. 


229 


door  bell  to  the  interior  of  the  engine  cab,  and  ran  a  rope 
from  it  backward  over  the  top  of  the  cars.  The  bell-rope 
at  present  in  use  was  devised  by  Captain  E.  A.  Ayres, 
of  the  Erie  railroad.  An  old  engineer  of  the  Erie  thus  tells 
the  story  in  the  New  York  "Times": 

"Once  in  a  while  the  conductor  found  it  desirable  to 
eject  some  would-be  deadhead  passenger  while  between 
stations,  but  as  there  was  no  way  to  let  the  engineer  know 
except  by  sending  word  by  a  brakeman,  and  as  he  usually  had 
to  climb  over  a  dozen  freight  cars  before  he  could  attract 
the  engineer's  attention,  it  frequently  happened  that  the 
train  reached  the  passenger's  destination  before  it  could  be 
stopped.  '  Pappy '  Ayres,  the  pioneer  Erie  conductor,  got 
tired  of  this,  and  one  day  he  tied  a  stick  of  wood  to  the  end 
of  a  long  rope,  hung  the  stick  in  the  engineer's  cab,  and 
carried  the  rope  over  the  cars  to  the  rear  of  the  train.  His 
idea  was  to  pull  the  rope  and  agitate  the  stick  of  wood 
when  he  wanted  the  engineer  to  stop  the  train.  He  had  to 
lick  the  engineer  before  the  latter  would  consent  to  recog- 
nize such  an  innovation,  but  it  worked  to  a  charm,  and  led 
to  the  introduction  of  the  now  universal  bell  and  rope 
system  of  signalling  on  cars." 

Electric  signal  bells  are  in  use  on  the  Southeastern  rail- 
way of  England.  The  wires  of  the  different  cars  are  joined  by 
electric  couplings,  so  that  the  whole  train  is  in  electric  con- 
nection. Passengers  can  signal  the  guard  by  pulling  out 
from  the  side  of  the  car  a  little  handle  resembling  a  bell- 
pull.  The  guards  also  have  their  separate  set  of  electric 
signals,  and  the  engine-driver  has  his.  So  that  a  guard  can 
either  signal  a  fellow  guard  or  the  engineer,  as  circum- 
stances require. 

Another  use  for  electricity  upon  trains  has  been  found 


230    WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY 


in  the  lighting  of  cars.  This  was  first  tried  in  England 
on  the  Brighton  railroad,  October  14,  1881.  The  car  used 
for  the  experiment  was  a  Pullman,  and  the  twelve  little 
incandescent  lamps  employed  gave  out  a  fine,  mild,  equable, 
white  light.  In  the  same  year  a  train  running  from 
Soissons  to  Paris  was  lighted  by  the  electric  flame,  and 
shortly  after  the  first  experiment  an  entire  train  of  Pull- 
man cars  on  the  same  railroad  was  lighted  by  Edison's 
incandescent  lamps.  A  peculiar  method  of  lighting  cars 
was  tried  recently  on  a  train  running  through  the  Thames 
tunnel.  It  consisted  in  painting  one-half  of  the  car  with 
Balmain's  phosphorescent  paint.  The  mellow  phosphoric 
glow  gave  out  light  sufficient  for  the  passengers  to  read 
their  watches  by,  and  proved  a  very  agreeable  substitute 
for  lamps.* 

The  Railway  Post-office  constitutes  an  interesting  feature 
of  the  train.  It  is  the  invention  of  the  English,  the 
mail-car  having  been  used  there  as  early  as  1837.  Before 
the  adoption  of  the  system  in  the  United  States,  postal 
matter  was  carried  over  railroads  and  common  roads  by 
United  States  mail  agents.  The  first  railroad  agent  was  John 
Mitchell,  of  Baltimore,  Md.,  who  was  appointed  at  a  salary 
of  eight  hundred  dollars,  by  the  Hon.  Amos  Kendall  (the 
postmaster  general  in  1837).  Mitchell's  route  lay  between 
Washington  and  Philadelphia,  and  he  alternated  in  the 

*  Before  passing  from  the  subject  of  cars  and  their  appointments,  we  must 
notice  a  novel  freight  car  recently  invented  in  Boston  It  is  a  non-freezing  car 
for  the  transportation  of  potatoes  in  winter,  and  is  provided  with  a  kerosene 
reservoir  and  stove  placed  beneath  the  centre  of  the  car.  The  reservoir  sup- 
plies the  stove  automatically  with  oil,  and  the  heated  air  is  conveyed  to  air- 
chambers  that  line  the  top,  bottom,  sides,  and  ends  of  each  car.  The  valve  of 
the  reservoir  is  so  adjusted  that  the  flow  of  oil  increases  as  the  cold  increases. 
Three  hundred  of  these  cars  have  been  constructed  for  the  "Down  East'1 
potato  trade,  and  they  are  also  employed  for  the  transportation  of  Florida  fruits. 


THE  TRAIN. 


231 


service  with  John  E.  Kendall,  a  nephew  of  the  postmaster 
general. 

Our  present  postal-car  service  was  introduced  by  Colonel 
George  B.  Armstrong  in  1864,  and  the  first  cars  fitted  up 
on  the  new  system  were  run  between  Chicago  and  Clinton, 
Iowa,  and  at  about  the  same  time  between  Washington  and 
New  York.  The  postal-cars  are  built  and  owned  by  the 
railway  companies,  but  are,  while  in  use,  under  the  direct 
control  of  the  government,  as  represented  by  its  official,  the 
general  superintendent  of  the  railway  mail  service.  The 
fundamental  principle  of  the  service  is  to  furnish  all  towns, 
both  large  and  small,  with  rapidly  transported  mails.  For- 
merly the  smaller  towns  along  a  railroad  received  their 
mail  by  slow  way-trains.  But  by  the  device  used  for 
exchanging  mail  bags  while  the  train  is  in  motion,  and  by 
the  plan  of  distributing  and  making  up  packages  of  mail  on 
the  train  itself,  time  is  saved  in  every  way,  and  the  small 
village  is  placed  on  a  par  with  the  great  city,  as  respects 
rapid  service. 

The  American  method  of  exchanging  mail-bags  differs 
from  the  English  in  several  respects.  Our  postal-car 
agent  throws  out  on  the  ground  the  mail-bag  he  wishes 
to  leave  at  a  small  station,  and  secures  the  exchange  bag 
by  means  of  a  V-shaped  iron  hook,  or  "  catcher,"  attached 
to  the  side  of  the  car;  this  exchange  bag,  outside,  is  sus- 
pended from  the  arm  of  a  post  near  the  track  in  such  a 
manner  that  it  is  caught  with  a  vice-like  grip  in  the 
pinch  of  the  on-rushing  V-hook.  It  requires  skill  and 
nice  calculation  to  be  able  to  throw  out  the  bags  in  a 
proper  manner  when  the  train  is  moving  rapidly.  And 
sometimes  a  telegraph-pole,  a  lamp-post,  or  a  switch-light 
is  caught  instead  of  the  expected  bag.    This  occurs  from 


232    WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 


a  mistake  of  the  agent  as  to  his  exact  locality;  so,  in 
order  that  he  may  be  warned  in  time,  the  engineer 
usually  blows  the  whistle  in  a  peculiar  manner  when 
nearing  a  catching  station.  The  American  plan  of  ex- 
changing mails  has  been  copied  in  Australia  and  India. 

In  English  mail-cars,  the  leather  bag  is  fastened  by 
a  spring  to  an  iron  bar  in  the  car,  and  when  the  ex- 
changing station  is  near  at  hand  the  bar  is  turned  out, 
and  the  bag  hangs  suspended  like  a  heavy  bait  put  out 
to  catch  fish.  At  the  same  time  the  catching  apparatus 
for  securing  the  return-bag  is  put  out;  this  consists  of  a 
net  attached  to  a  bar.  In  a  moment  a  sharp  jerk  is 
heard  — the  exchange  has  been  effected  —  one  bag  drops 
into  the  roadside  net,  and  at  the  same  moment  other 
bags  come  tumbling  into  the  car-net,  which  is  immedi- 
ately drawn  in,  and  its  contents  dumped  upon  the  floor, 
ready  to  be  sorted  and  pigeon-holed  by  the  busy  clerks. 

The  usual  companion  of  the  mail-car,  in  an  Am- 
erican railway  train,  is  the  Express-car.  The  origina- 
tor of  the  express  business  in  America  was  William 
F.  Harnden.  He  had  been  an  employe  of  the  old 
Boston  and  Worcester  railroad;  but  in  1839,  being  in 
New  York  and  out  of  employment,  he  called  for  advice 
upon  James  W.  Hale,  who  kept  a  popular  reading  room 
in  the  old  Tontine  Coffee  House,  corner  of  Wall  and 
Pearl  streets.  Mr.  Hale  advised  him  to  establish  himself 
as  a  messenger,  or  parcel-carrier,  between  Boston  and 
New  York,  and  suggested  the  word  "  Express  "  as  a  suit- 
able title  for  the  new  business.  At  that  time  there  were 
no  other  means  of  getting  valuable  parcels  to  and  fro  than 
by  consigning  them  to  the  care  of  some  traveller,  who 
was  often  a  complete  stranger  to  the  party  sending  by 


THE  TRAIN". 


233 


him.  The  idea  of  an  express  business  had  suggested 
itself  to  Mr.  Hale  from  the  circumstance  that  inquiries 
were  every  day  made  at  his  reading  room  for  parties  going 
to  Boston  or  Providence,  who  could  be  induced  to  carry 
parcels.  Harnden  acted  as  advised,  and  advertised  himself 
as  an  express  agent  between  Boston,  Providence  and  New 
York.  He  travelled  by  the  Sound  steamers,  and  for  some 
time  a  single  carpet-bag  held  all  the  money  and  valuables 
consigned  to  his  care;  at  the  present  day  the  express 
business  surpasses  all  other  private  enterprises  in  the 
world,  with  the  exception  of  the  railway  and  the  telegraph. 
Harnden  died  early,  1845,  and  was  buried  in  Mt.  Auburn 
Cemetery,  near  Boston. 

A  rival  of  Harnden,  from  1840  onwards,  was  the  young 
Vermonter,  Alvin  Adams,  founder  of  the  Adams  Express 
Company.  Most  of  the  wealth  of  this  famous  firm  was 
got  by  business  done  during  the  Civil  War.* 

A  small  book  might  be  written  on  the  subject  of  Rail- 
road Tickets  alone.  But  all  that  is  of  popular  interest  can 
be  told  in  a  couple  of  pages.  Those  little  pieces  of  red, 
yellow,  blue,  green,  chocolate,  buff,  and  pink  card-board; 
and  those  great  white  tickets  thickly  studded  with  numbers, 
letters,  and  quaint  designs,  and  emblazoned  with  brilliant 
colors,- — did  it  ever  occur  to  you  to  estimate  the  immense 
number  of  them  that  must  be  used  by  the  railways  of  the 
world?  Think  of  the  permutations  necessary  in  devising 
tickets  for  a  road  with,  say,  ninety-eight  stations.  The 
agent  at  each  of  these  stations  must  be  able  to  furnish 

*  Founders  of  other  Express  Companies  were  Henry  Wells  (at  one  time  an 
assistant  of  Harnden)  and  Wra.  G.  Fargo.  The  baggage  and  transfer  business 
was  started  in  New  York  city  in  1852  by  Warren  Studley  and  his  brother,  to 
whom  succeeded  Mr.  Dodd.  For  further  particulars  of  the  express  business 
see  4k  Harper's  Monthly  11  for  1875,  page  314. 


234    WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 


a  ticket  to  every  other,  and  no  two  tickets  must  be 
alike.  For  ninety-eight  stations,  then,  you  must  have 
four  thousand  four  hundred  different  tickets.  Indeed, 
the  number  is  so  great  that  no  conductor  ever  learns  to 
know  them  all  critically.  There  are  six  firms  in  the 
United  States  legitimately  engaged  in  the  manufacture 
of  railway  tickets;  and  a  single  one  of  these,  located  in 
Boston,  prints  for  New  England  roads  seventeen  million 
local  tickets  in  one  year,  their  machine  turning  out  from 
twelve  thousand  to  thirty- two  thousand  an  hour.* 

In  the  early  days  of  the  railway,  no  tickets  at  all  were 
used,  the  receipt  of  the  booking-clerk  serving  as  evidence 
of  the  payment  of  the  fare.  The  first  printed  tickets  were 
invented  and  issued  about  1836  by  a  man  named  John  Ed- 
mondson,  who  was  then  employed  at  a  little  wayside  railway 
station  in  the  neighborhood  of  Carlisle,  England.  His  print- 
ing apparatus  was  of  a  very  simple  and  primitive  kind, 
consisting  of  a  few  types  fastened  together  in  a  case  about 
the  size  of  a  nail-brush.  The  name  of  the  station  to  which 
the  passenger  was  going  was  written  upon  the  ticket  at  the 
time  of  its  issue.  Edmondson  found  his  device  a  very  use- 
ful one,  and  kept  inventing  new  machinery  and  increasing 
his  business,  until  it  became  a  great  industry,  and  tickets 
were  printed  by  his  establishment  for  railways  all  over  the 
world.f  The  sons  of  Edmondson  still  carry  on  this  immense 
business  at  Manchester.  The  most  important  stride  in 
advance  was  made  when  the  tickets  were  consecutively 
numbered,  for  the  accuracy  of  railway  accounts  depends 

*  For  many  of  these  facts  relating  to  railway  tickets,  the  author  is  indebted 
to  Mr.  Robert  S.  Gardiner,  of  Boston. 

t  The  greater  part  of  French  and  Spanish  railway  tickets  are  printed  by  De 
la  Rue,  of  Paris,  and  Sampson,  Low  and  Company,  of  London.  The  great  Eng- 
lish railways  print  their  own  tickets.  Mexico,  Cuba,  and  South  America  get  a 
portion  of  their  tickets  in  the  United  States. 


THE  TRAIN. 


235 


on  the  careful  numbering  and  counting  of  tickets.  Ed- 
mondson's  perfected  steam-power  machine  was  an  exceed- 
ingly ingenious  and  delicate  little  piece  of  mechanism. 
He  had  a  small  table  with  a  long,  thin  box  rising  above  it 
at  the  back,  and  another  box  falling  below  it  in  front.  The 
table  contained  the  printing  machinery  and  type-case,  while 
the  boxes  were  for  holding  tickets,  and  were  just  as  wide  as 
a  ticket.  The  upper  box  was  filled  with  a  pile  of  card- 
board pieces,  and  one  at  a  time  the  lowest  cards  were  jerked 
by  a  spring  under  the  printing  machinery,  and  then  passed 
to  the  lower  box;  the  process  for  each  ticket  required  less 
than  a  second  of  time ;  all  that  the  attendant  had  to  do  was 
to  keep  the  upper  box  filled  with  cards,  remove  the  lower 
box  when  filled,  supply  fresh  boxes,  pile  the  finished  tickets 
in  rows,  and  see  that  the  ink  reservoir  was  full.  The  num- 
bering was  done  by  wheels  with  raised  numerals  on  their 
edges;  the  wheel  which  had  on  its  edge  the  first  nine  num- 
erals moved  so  that  a  fresh  type  was  ready  for  each  suc- 
cessive ticket;  the  wheel  in  the  tens'  place  at  one  tenth  that 
rate,  and  so  on.  The  testing  of  the  tickets  for  correct  num- 
bering was  also  done  by  machinery;  for  the  apparatus  was 
so  contrived  that  if  the  numbering  did  not  go  forward  in 
perfect  order,  a  spring  was  released  which  rang  a  bell  of 
warning.  The  past  tense  has  been  used  in  describing  this 
mechanism,  because,  although,  the  essential  principle  of  it 
is  still  embodied  in  the  machines  now  used,  there  have  been 
a  great  many  changes  made  in  the  way  of  improvements. 

The  first  consecutively  numbered  tickets  in  America 
were  printed  for  Sanford,  Harroun  and  Warren,  of  Buf- 
falo, by  George  Bailey,  who  was  sent  over  by  Edmondson 
with  one  of  his  machines.  This  was  in  1855.  Previous  to 
this,  tickets  were  plain  unnumbered  pieces  of  card-board 


236    WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 

good  for  a  single  passage.  As  late  as  1860  such  tickets 
were  used  on  the  Boston  and  Providence  railroad.  The 
cheap-excursion-ticket  system  was  invented  by  Josiah  Per- 
ham  of  Maine,  known  by  his  long  agitation  of  the  question 
of  a  Northern  Pacific  railroad.  One  of  the  curiosities,  or 
mysteries,  of  the  ticket-system  is  the  fact  that  five  per  cent 
of  the  tickets  issued  never  return  to  the  company  issuing 
them.  What  becomes  of  them?  Is  it  possible  that  so  large 
a  number  are  never  used  at  all? 

It  remains  to  speak  of  coupon-tickets,  which  are  the  in- 
vention of  a  gentleman  named  Hebbard.  He  was,  or  is,  a 
civil  engineer  connected  with  the  United  States  Navy.  The 
tickets  were  first  used  on  the  Baltimore  and  Ohio  road, 
and  at  first  excited  great  opposition  and  ridicule.  But  the 
merriment  was  ill-timed,  for  they  have  now  become  a  neces- 
sity as  well  as  a  convenience  to  travellers.  In  order  to 
prevent  the  counterfeiting  of  coupons  the  best  work  of  the 
bank-note  engraver  is  called  into  requisition.  This  is  par- 
ticularly  necessary  since  coupon-tickets  go  all  over  the  land, 
and  are  handled  by  sellers  and  agents  far  removed  from  the 
roads  in  the  combination.  The  necessity  for  a  coupon- 
ticket  arises  from  the  circumstance  that  between  two  dis- 
tant points  there  are  often  several  lines  of  railway.  The 
traveller  does  not  wish  to  get  off  the  train  every  six  hours, 
and  at  any  time  of  day  or  night,  to  purchase  a  new  ticket. 
Hence  a  combination  of  roads  agree  to  issue  a  joint  ticket. 
Where  there  are  fifty  or  sixty  different  routes  between  two 
great  cities  it  is  a  difficult  science  to  work  out  the  rates  and 
combinations  satisfactorily  to  all  concerned.  The  shortest 
line  in  a  combination  always  fixes  the  rate,  i.e.,  the  longer 
lines- between  two  points  must  carry  a  passenger  at  the  same 
rate  as  the  shortest  one.    A  semi-annual  convention  of  gen- 


THE  TRAIK. 


237 


eral  passenger  agents  is  held  for  the  determining  of  coupon 
rates,  and  a  rate-sheet  is  made  out,  apportioning  to  each 
section  of  a  through  route  the  share  decreed  it  on  the  divi- 
sion of  the  money  received  by  the  selling  road.  Each 
month,  tickets  and  coupons  are  collected  and  interchanged, 
and  a  balancing  of  accounts  takes  place. 

The  collector  of  tickets,  or  the  conductor,  as  he  is  called 
in  America,  is  a  much  abused  man,  and  a  much  "enduring 
man.    There  are  brutal  conductors,  and  there  are  gentle- 
manly conductors,  some  are  hard  and  unobliging,  and  others 
are  kind  and  tender-hearted.     Many  are  profligate,  and 
many  are  noble  in  character; — on  the  whole,  a  body  of 
men  popular,  generous,  and  brave.    More  kind  acts  of  con- 
ductors pass  unrecorded  than  would  be  imagined.  Not  long 
ago  as  a  conductor  on  a  western  railroad  was  standing  on 
the  step  of  one  of  his  cars  which  was  in  rapid  motion,  he 
saw  on  the  opposite  track  an  old  man  walking  with  his  back 
to  the  Chicago  Express  which  was  rushing  upon  him  with 
lightning  speed  only  a  few  rods  off.    It  flashed  across  the 
mind  of  the  conductor  that  he  could  save  the  old  man  by 
jumping  so  as  to  hurl  himself  against  him;  the  thought  he 
embodied  in  the  act,  caught  the  man  in  his  arms,  and  landed 
him  safely  in  the  ditch,  both  being  by  good  luck  unhurt. 
This  is  only  one  out  of  many  similar  acts  by  conductors. 
But  on  the  other  side  we  have  such  experiences  as  that  of 
Mr.  John  A.  Coleman  of  Providence,  Rhode  Island,  who  was 
brutally  ejected  by  a  conductor  from  a  train  on  the  New 
York  and  New  Haven  railroad,  received  severe  injuries, 
and,  after  a  long  fight  of  four  years  in  the  courts,  received 
three  thousand  five  hundred  dollars  damages.*    Mr.  Cole- 

*  He  tells  his  story  in  a  fascinating  style  in  the  "  Atlantic  Monthly  "  for  De- 
cember, 1872,  and  May,  1873.    ("  The  Fight  of  a  Man  with  a  Kailroad." 


238    WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 

man  had  a  coupon  good  on  its  face  for  a  ride  from  New 
Haven  to  New  York,  and,  although  having  a  through  ticket 
in  his  pocket,  he  determined  to  make  a  test  case  and  see  if 
his  ticket  were  not  good  from  New  York  to  New  Haven. 
The  conductor  said  he  had  been  ordered  by  his  directors 
not  to  receive  such  tickets,  and  after  some  debate  he  and 
his  roughs  forcibly  ejected  Mr.  Coleman  from  the  train. 
During  the  terrible  struggle  the  flesh  was  torn  from  the 
arm  and  legs  of  the  resisting  passenger,  he  was  ruptured 
for  life,  and  finally  thrown  heavily  upon  his  side  on  the 
platform.  The  damages  awarded  him  were  for  brutal  as- 
sault, not  for  the  refusal  of  the  road  to  take  the  coupon; 
but  the  courts  have  now  pretty  generally  decided  that  a 
railway  ticket  is  good  either  way. 

The  embezzlements  of  fares  by  conductors  are  enormous; 
and  many  railways  employ  "  spotters,"  or  spies,  to  detect 
them  in  their  frauds.  At  one  time  the  New  York  Central 
employed  women  spotters  who  were  furnished  with  books 
of  instructions,  note  books,  an  apparatus  of  mirrors  placed 
at  an  angle,  and  other  traps.  A  set  of  these  implements 
was  captured  by  the  employes  of  one  of  the  trains,  and 
afforded  them  much  merriment.  In  1866,  a  certain  rail- 
road, leading  out  of  Boston,  discharged  every  passenger  con- 
ductor in  its  employ,  and  put  on  the  road  new  men  wholly 
unused  to  the  work.  The  next  month's  receipts  showed  an 
addition  of  thirty-three  per  cent;  and  there  had  been  no 
increase  of  travel.  In  January,  1882,  seventeen  spotters 
sent  out  from  New  York  detected  many  cases  of  neglect  on 
the  part  of  conductors  of  western  railroads  to  give  rebate 
checks  for  cash  fares.  A  rebate  check  serves  as  an  indica- 
tion of  fare  received  by  conductor,  when  it  is  presented  at 
an  office  for  payment.    But  some  of  the  conductors  said  the 


THE  TRAIK. 


239 


plan  was  an  imputation  on  their  honesty,  and  refused  to 
obey  orders.  The  consequence  was  that  one  thousand  of 
them"' were  discharged  at  once  by  the  managers  of  the  sev- 
eral western  railroads  lying  between  St.  Louis  and  Denver. 
In  the  single  year  1863,  the  conductors  of  the  Philadelphia 
and  Eeading  railroad  embezzled  about  eighty  thousand  dol- 
lars. After  three  years1  employment  of  Allan  Pinkerton's 
detective  system,  the  peculations  per  annum  were  reduced 
to  about  five  thousand  dollars. 

Railways  not  only  suffer  from  conductors'  appropria- 
tions, but  from  the  depredations  of  petty  sneak  thieves 
among  humbler  employes,  as  well  as  from  the  bold  rob- 
beries of  the  masked  Claude  Duvals  of  the  day.  In  Eng- 
land the  open  freight  cars  especially  invite  pilfering.  A 
few  years  ago  the  Midland  Railway  Company  discovered 
that  their  trains  were  being  robbed  of  wine.  Casks  arriv- 
ing at  the  North  were  found  to  be  broached,  and  no  one 
knew  how  it  came  about.  The  company  determined  to  con- 
ceal spies  on  one  of  their  wine  trains,  and  see  if  they  could 
not  ferret  out  the  secret.  Nothing  occurred  to  excite  sus- 
picion until  the  train  reached  a  certain  tunnel  at  a  lonely 
part  of  the  road.  Here  the  train  was  stopped,  and  the 
engineer,  assisted  by  a  signalman,  threw  back  the  tarpaulin 
from  one  of  the  freight  wagons,  broached  a  cask  of  wine, 
drew  off  a  quantity  in  buckets,  and  passed  it  around  to  all 
the  employes.  After  a  jolly  bout  by  the  company,  the  cloth 
was  replaced  and  the  train  steamed  onward.  Cheeses  also 
seem  to  offer  a  peculiar  temptation  to  the  English  train 
thief,  and  many  a  fat  dairy  cheese  has  rolled  down  into 
ditch  or  hedge,  whence  it  could  afterward  be  taken  away  at 
night. 

A  train  robbery  of  a  peculiarly  dare-devil  nature  oc- 


240    WOKDERS  AJSTD  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 


curred  in  England  not  lon^  ago.    A  noble  family  leaving 
London  for  the  east  coast  had  a  brass-bound  box,  contain- 
ing a  selection  of  plate,  placed  on  the  roof  of  their  car  and 
securely  covered  with  tarpaulin.    The  train  was  an  after- 
noon express  which  stopped  at  only  three  or  four  large 
stations  during  the  whole  journey,  and  arrived  at  its  desti- 
nation two  hours  after  dark.    The  box  seemed  absolutely 
safe,  and  no  one  dreamed  of  a  possible  robbery,  until  when 
the  coast  was  reached,  it  was  discovered  that  a  goodly  por- 
tion of  the  plate  had  been  abstracted.    Upon  investigation, 
it  appeared  that  a  suspicious-looking  character  had  tele- 
graphed from  London  in  cipher  to  an  individual  at  a  certain 
way  station.    When  the  train  arrived  at  this  station,  the 
man  who  had  received  the 'telegram  boarded  the  train, 
being  shown  by  the  guard  into  an  empty  compartment.' 
Now,  as  soon  as  it  was  dark,  this  man  must  have  accom- 
plished the  almost  incredible  feat  of  traversing  the  cars 
between  him  and  the  box,  while  the  train  was  going  at  the 
rate  of  forty  miles  an  hour;  then  mounted  to  the  roof  of 
the  last  car,  unfastened  the  tarpaulin,  selected  the  brass- 
bound  box  out  of  twenty  or  thirty  other  packages,  without 
exciting  the  attention  of  those  within  the  car,  forced  it 
open,  disposed  about  his  clothing  as  many  pieces  of  plate 
as  he  could  carry,  refastened  the  tarpaulin,  and  retraced 
his  steps  safe  and  undetected  to  his  own  car.    At  the  next 
station  he  left  the  train,  carrying  a  bulky  portmanteau, 
and  was  not  heard  of  more. 

At  a  certain  large  freight  depot  in  England,  a  great 
many  articles  were  at  o-ne  time  missed,  chiefly  parcels  of 
medium/ size  and  weight.  One  day  while  walking  about 
the  freight-house,  intent  upon  other  business,  the  superin- 
tendent noticed  that  in  a  certain  place  some  of  the  boards 


THE  TBAIN. 


241 


that  faced  the  space  between  the  ground  and  the  floor  of 
the  platform  — a  height  of  about  three  feet— looked  as  if 
they  had  recently  been  removed.    On  trying  them  he  found 
that  they  yielded  easily,  exposing  to  view  the  dark  cavity 
within.    This  he  proceeded  to  explore,  crawling  in  on  his 
hands  and  knees,  and  taking  a  dark  lantern  with  him. 
Presently  he  emerged  with  a  grin  of  satisfaction  on  his  face, 
remarking  to  his  man  that  he  thought  he  should  catch  his 
thief  now.     He  replaced  the  planking,  and  late  the  same 
night,  unknown  to  any  one  but  his  assistant,  entered  the 
cavity,  which  was  so  narrow  and  low  that  he  was  obliged  to 
lie  at  full  length.    About  three  or  four  o'clock  in  the  morn- 
ing, when  the  noises  of  the  coming  day's  labor  and  traffic 
were  beginning  to  be  heard,  he  was  aware  of  the  sounds  of 
footsteps  approaching  the  spot;  his  heart  beat  quick  with 
excitement;  the  sound  of  the  footsteps  ceased  opposite  his 
hiding-place;   there  was  a  moment's  pause  and  then  the 
boards  were  pushed  aside,  and  a  hand  holding  a  parcel  tied 
up  with  a  string  and  brown  paper  was  thrust  into  the  hole. 
There  was  just  light  enough  from  the.  lamps  near  at  hand 
for  him  to  see  what  he  was  about;  he  had  previously  got 
his  handcuffs  out,  and  had  fastened  one  ring  of  them  round 
one  of  the  iron  supports  of  the  platform.    "The  moment 
the  fellow  thrust  his  hand  into  the  hole,"  said  the  superin- 
tendent afterward,  "  I  knocked  the  parcel  out  of  his  fingers, 
grasped  him  firmly  by  the  wrist,  gave  him  a  sudden  jerk  for- 
ward, and  before  he  could  say  Jack  Robinson  the  other  ring 
of  the  handcuffs  was  slipped  on  to  him,  and  there  he  was  in 
as  nice  a  little  trap  as  ever  I  saw."    He  proved  to  be  a  man 
who  came  on  duty  early  to  help  load  up  market  goods.  He 
had  generally  taken  the  parcels  while  the  watchman  was 

absent  for  a  moment  unlocking  the  offices,  and  had  hidden 
16 


242    WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OE  THE  RAILWAY. 


them  temporarily  under  some  boxes  until  he  could  safely 
remove  them  to  the  hole  under  the  platform. 

Another  ingenious  trick  of  train-thieves  was  tried  in 
North  Germany,  where  a  railway  company  had  long  suffered 
from  depredations  without  being  able  to  detect  the  criminal. 
One  day  a  box  labelled,  "  This  Side  Up,"  came  into  the 
freight-house;  but  the  employes,  disregarding  the  direction, 
happened  to  set  it  upside  down.  Some  time  afterward  they 
were  astonished  to  hear  a  smothered  voice  apparently  pro- 
ceeding from  the  box,  and  begging  those  near  at  hand  to  let 
the  owner  of  the  voice  out.  On  opening  the  box  —  heigho! 
a  man  inside  standing  on  his  head!  When  he  got  on  his 
legs  he  tried  to  persuade  the  officials  that  his  presence  in 
the  box  was  the  result  of  a  bet  he  had  made.  But  the  story 
would  not  "  take,"  and  it  was  soon  discovered  that  this  was 
the  method  the  thieves  had  taken  to  secure  their  booty. 
All  that  the  imprisoned  man  had  to  do  was  to  let  himself 
out  of  the  box  during  the  absence  of  the  employes,  then  fill 
it  with  whatever  he  could  lay  his  hands  on,  fasten  down  the 
cover,  leave  the  box  to  be  forwarded  to  the,  address  marked 
on  it,  and  then  decamp  as  quickly  as  possible. 

A  single  specimen  of  our  western  train  robberies  will 
suffice  for  hundreds  of  similar  ones.  The  eastward-bound 
train  on  the  Missouri  Pacific  railroad  left  Otterville, 
Missouri,  a  few  minutes  past  ten  o'clock  on  Friday  night, 
July  7,  1876,  and  when  two  and  a  half  miles  east  of  that 
place,  the  engineer  perceived  in  a  deep  cut  the  signal- 
light  for  stopping.  He  applied  the  air-brakes,  and  presently 
saw  a  pile  of  ties  and  timber  on  the  track.  At  the  same 
moment  a  dozen  masked  men  dashed  up  to  the  train, 
uttering  terrific  yells  and  discharging  their  pistols.  Two 
of  them,  jumping  on  the  engine,  covered  the  engineer 


THE  TRAIlsT. 


243 


and  fireman  with  navy  revolvers,  and  then  marched  them 
into  the  baggage-car,  where  they  were  placed  under  guard. 
While  this  was  going  on,  three  other  robbers  had  climbed 
into  the  express-car;  but  the  express  messenger,  Bushnell, 
had  already  dashed  through  the  train  to  the  sleeping-car 
in  the  rear,  and  made  one  of  the  brakemen  put  the  keys 
of  the  safe  in  his  boot.     Mr.  Oonkling,  the  baggage-man 
of  the  train,  was  in  the  express-car  when  the  robbers 
entered,  and  him  they  marched  with  a  revolver  at  his 
head  slowly  through  the  train,  commanding  him  to  point 
out  the  messenger  when  he  saw  him.    The  women  and 
children  were  in  great  fear,  and  many  even  of  the  male 
passengers  crouched  down  behind  the  seats.    When  the 
keys  were  obtained  the  Adams  safe  was  opened,  and  the 
contents  placed  in  a  wheat-sack,  which  had  been  brought 
for  the  purpose.    One  of  the  safes  could  not  be  opened 
with  the  keys,  and  one  of  the  villains  obtained  a  pick 
from  the  engine-cab  and  forced  open  the  panel.    All  this 
time  the  rest  of  the  thieves  were  parading  up  and  down 
outside  of  the  train,  yelling  and  firing  off  their  revolvers. 
The  passengers  were   unarmed,  and   no   resistance  was 
made.    About  sixteen  thousand  dollars  was  carried  oil; 
and  although  several  parties  of  men  started  out  in  pursuit, 
the  chase  was  rather  a  hopeless  one. 

We  have  now  finished  our  survey  of  the  railroad  system 
of  the  world.  Much  has  been  left  unsaid.  We  have  not 
considered  many  of  the  more  conspicuous  faults  of  railroads 
—  the  corrupt  pass  system,  dangerous  tracks,  wretched 
restaurants,  badly  ventilated  cars,*  arrogance  and  surli- 

*  "  Five  hundred  inches  of  openings  to  permit  the  escape  of  one  and  a  half 
million  cubic  inches  of  foul  air  exhaled  from  the  lungs  of  fifty  human  beings 
in  one  hour!  " 


244    WONDERS  AND  CURIOSITIES  OF  THE  RAILWAY. 

ness  of  officials,  unjust  rates,  cruel  combinations  against 
the  farmers,  discrimination  in  favor  of  individuals  and 
monopolizing  firms,  and  the  corruption  of  voters  and 
legislatures.  Nor  have  we  entered  upon  the  topic  of 
railway  accidents  (eight  thousand  two  hundred  and  fifteen 
persons  either  killed  or  maimed  in  one  year  in  the  United 
States!).  Not  that  many  wonderful  and  curious  things 
would  not  have  been  ploughed  up  in  treating  of  these 
themes;  but  the  adequate  presentation  of  them  would  not 
only  have  unduly  swelled  the  proportions  of  the  volume, 
but  would  have  launched  us  upon  an  endless  ocean  of 
political  and  statistical  discussion. 

What  is  to  be  the  future  of  the  steam  locomotive,  it 
is  hard  to  predict,  in  view  of  the  possibilities  of  air- 
navigation,  and  the  introduction  of  electric  and  other 
motors.  But  there  is  no  permanent  diminution  of  railway 
construction;  rather  an  enormous  increase,  and  it  is 
certain  that  as  long  as  men  are  obliged  to  draw  heavy 
loads  over  rough  and  muddy  ground,  a  solid  rail  will 
be  preferred  to  a  rut.  It  is,  therefore,  almost  certain 
that  the  locomotive  will  go  on  conquering  and  to  conquer 
until  its  sway  extends  over  the  three  great  continents  of 
the  globe  not  yet  netted  with  iron  roads.  And  it  is  to 
be  hoped  that  there  will  be  a  corresponding  increase  in 
safety-devices,  and  in  plans  for  adding  architectural  beauty 
to  the  railway  buildings  now  so  unsightly,  as  well  as 
landscape  adornment  to  the  grounds,,  now  so  barren  of 
cultivation. 


INDEX. 


Accidents  and  locomotive  engi- 
neers, 204. 

Accidents,  railway,  244. 

Acropolis,  the,  90. 

Adams,  Charles  Francis,  Jr.,  4 
(note),  22  (note),  222. 

Adams,  Alvin,  233. 

Adams,  William  and  Company, 
146,  147. 

Adhesive  power  of  electric  loco- 
motive, 166. 

"  Advertiser,"  the  Boston,  59. 

Africa,  railroads  in,  98-100. 

Albany,  32,  47,  51,  52,  61. 

Albany  and  Schenectady  railroad, 
10. 

Aleppo,  116. 
Alexandretta,  116. 
Alleghany  Mountains,  127. 
Allen,  Horatio,  36,  37,  38,  77. 
Allen,  W.  F.,  88. 
Allier,  M.,  20. 

Ambulances,  railway,  181,  182. 

"American  Architect,"  the,  176. 

American  House,  Boston,  151. 

' '  Ampere, "  the  (electric  locomo- 
tive), 165. 

Apaches,  the,  73. 

"Arabian,"  the,  76,  77. 

Arago,  M.,  20. 

Archbishop,  a  French,  16. 

Armored  railway  train,  187,  188. 

Armstrong,  Colonel  Geo.  B.,  231. 

Arth  Rigi  railway,  130. 

Asleep  on  an  engine,  203. 

Atlanta,  Georgia,  118. 

Atlanta  and  Charlotte  Air  Line, 
122. 

Atlanta  campaign,  180,  184. 

245 


"Atlantic   Monthly,"  140,  237 
(note). 

Atmospheric  railways,  120,  121. 
Automatic  signals,  220. 
Ayers,  Captain  E.  A.,  229. 


Back  Bay,  Boston,  152. 
Bailey,  George,  235. 
Baldwin,  Cyrus  W.,  147. 
Baldwin  Locomotive  Works,  197. 
Baldwin,  W.  W.,  of  Philadelphia, 
52. 

Balmain's  phosphorescent  paint, 
230. 

Baltimore  and  Ohio  railroad,  33, 

39-45,  76,  77.  . 
Bascom,  C.  J.,  121. 
Bathing  cars,  189. 
Bayswater,  London,  172. 
Belfast  and  Northern  Counties 

railroad,  162. 
Bell-rope,  the  conductor's,  228, 

229. 

"Ben.  Franklin,"  the  old,  206, 
207. 

"Bentley's  Miscellany,"  25. 
Benton,  Thomas  H.,  68  (note). 
Berlin,  197. 

Berlin  Exhibition,  electric  rail- 
road at,  160. 
"Best  Friend,"  the,  45,  46. 
Betteley,  Albert,  147,  148. 
Bicycle  railways,  116,  176,  177. 
Birkenhead  (England),  172. 
"Bite"  of  the  wheel,  32. 
Blair's  Gap,  128. 
Block  system, '219,  220. 
Booking  passengers,  56. 
"Boston,  Memorial  History  of," 


246 


INDEX. 


4  (note);  and  the  new  time- 
standard,  89. 

Boston  and  Albany  (formerly 
called  Boston  and  Worcester), 
57  (note),  59,  60. 

Boston  and  Lowell  railroad,  10, 

58,  59,  60. 

Boston  and  Maine  railroad,  207, 
216. 

Boston  and  Providence  railroad, 

59,  60,  61,  236. 

Boston  and  Worcester  railroad 
(see  Boston  and  Albany). 

Boudoir  cars,  the  Mann,  195. 

Bound  Brook  route,  197. 

Box,  man  inside  a,  242. 

Brazil,  inclined  railway  in,  132. 

Breck,  Samuel,  22,  189. 

Brenner  railroad,  134-137. 

"Brigades"  of  cars,  54. 

Bristol  and  Exeter  railroad,  202. 

Brooman,  Richard  A.,  150,  151. 

Brown,  William  H.,  47. 

Brunei,  I.  K.,  197. 

Brunton,  William,  his  locomotive 
with  legs,  8. 

Bryant,  Gridley,  33,  59. 

Buckingham,  Joseph  T.,  58. 

Buenos  Ayres,  173. 

Buffalo,  New  York,  4. 

Buffer,  the  first,  50,  51. 

Bull  Run,  defeat  of,  179. 

Bull,  the,  and  the  engine,  65. 

Bunker  Hill  Monument,  33. 

Burleigh,  Charles,  of  Fitchburg, 
138. 

Burning-glass,  12. 
Burnt  Mill  Point,  35. 
"  Burthen"  cars,  54. 
4 'Busy  Bee,"  the,  202,  203. 
Bwlffa  coal,  112. 

C 

Cab  (of  locomotive),  200. 
Cable  railways,  173,  174. 
Calcutta,  94,  95. 

Callao,  Lima  and  Oroya  railroad, 

141. 
Camborne,  7., 

Cambridge  (Massachusetts),  first 
horse  railroad  in,  172. 


"  Camel-backs,"  199. 
Canadian  Pacific  railroad,  73. 
Capture  of  a  Locomotive,  185- 
188. 

Car,  first  passenger  (the  "  Ex- 
periment "),  9 ;  Stephenson's 
first  passenger,  10 ;  the  eight- 
wheeled,  33;  with  sails,  39, 
121,  122;  the  "Victory,"  54; 
telegraphic,  122,  123;  dyno- 
graph,  124;  bathing,  189;  mak- 
ing of  a  wheel,  225;  "  Railway 
Age,"  193,  226;  postal,  230; 
express,  232. 

Carbondale,  125. 

Cars,  luxurious,  191-193;  pal- 
ace and  sleeping,  193-195; 
smoking,  195;  Mann  boudoir, 
195;  lighting  bv  electricity, 
229,  230;  lighting  by  phos- 
phorescent paint,  230. 

Caste  96. 

Cenisl  Mt.,  127;  railway,  138. 
Central  Pacific  railroad,  71,  72. 
Central  Park,   New  York  city, 
174. 

"  Century  Magazine,"  see  "  Scrib- 

ner's." 
Ceylon,  90. 

Chambers's  Journal,  135, 

Chard  and  Taunton  Railroad 
Company,  202. 

Charing  Cross  Hotel,  152.  # 

Charleston  and  Hamburg  rail- 
road, 45-47. 

Charleston,  Massachusetts,  34. 

Charlottenburg  and  Spandau 
electric  railroad,  160,  161. 

Chased  by  a  locomotive,  206,  207. 

Chat  Moss,  19  (note). 

Chattahoochee,  184. 

Cheltenham,  8. 

Chicago,  88 ;  first  railroad  out  of, 
70 ;  Railway  Exposition  at,  75 ; 
cable  railways  in,  173. 

Chicago  Exposition,  electric  rail- 
way at,  164. 

Chicago,  Milwaukee  and  St.  Paul 
railroad,  69  (note). 

Childs,  Colonel,  193. 

Chilian  laborers,  143. 


INDEX. 


U1 


China,  first  and  only  railroad  in, 
93. 

Chinese  laborers,  143. 

Ghota-hazare,  the,  95. 

Cincinnati  inclined  railways,  131. 

Cincinnati,  Sandusky  and  Cleve- 
land railroad,  62. 

Civil  war  (American),  railways  in 
the,  184. 

Clapham  Junction,  223. 

Clark,  JohnT.,  48. 

Clay,  Henry,  62. 

Clergue,  F."  H,  132. 

Clinton,  Iowa,  231. 

Coleman,  John  A.,  237,  238. 

Coleman,  Robert,  118. 

Cologne,  5. 

Columbia,  Pennsylvania,  127, 128. 
Conductors,  237,  238. 
"Consolidations,"  199. 
Cooper,  Peter,  his  first  locomo- 
tive, 38-45. 
Coupon  tickets,  236,  237. 
Cox,  Jacob  D.,  184. 
"Cow-catcher,"  a  novel,  63. 
Cumberland  River,  182. 

D 

Daft,  Leo,  164-167,  173  (note). 
Darlington,  21;  Semi-centennial 

of    the  railroad  at,   12,  13; 

Stockton  and  Darlington  rail-r 

road,  8-13. 
Darrell,  Nicholas  W.,  46. 
Davidson,  George,  76. 
Deadhead,  229. 
Dearborn,  Benjamin,  56,  57. 
De  la  Rue,  Paris,  234  (note). 
Delaware  and  Hudson  canal,  and 

the  company,  35,  36,  125. 
Delaware  River  railway,  86,  87. 
Denver,  239. 

Denver  and  Rio  Grande  railroad, 
74,  141  (note). 

.Depots,  railway,  214-216. 

Deprez,  M.  Marcel,  159. 

Despatches  train,  218,  219. 

Detmold,  C.  E.,  46. 

"  De  Witt  Clinton,"  the  old  loco- 
motive, 47-51. 


Dickens,  Charles,  on  the  English 

refreshment  room,   107,  108; 

description  of  Mugby  Junction, 

215  (note). 
Dodd,  Mr.,  233  (note). 
Dorchester,  59. 
Double-order  system,  219. 
Dry  Dock  railway  in  New  York 

city,  35. 
Dudley,  P.  H.,  124. 
Du  Moncel,  158. 
Dymond,  Mr.  R.,  197. 
Dynograph  car,  124. 

E 

Eads,  Captain  James  B.,  119, 120. 

East  Indian  railroad,  94,  95. 

Edison,  Thomas  Alva,  162-164. 

Edison's  lamps  on  cars,  230. 

Eggleston,  N.  H.,  140. 

Edmonson,  John,  234. 

Eight-wheeled  car,  33. 

Electric  air-ship  of  Tissandier 
Brothers,  159. 

Electric  railway  of  Chicago  Ex- 
position, 75. 

"  Electric  Review,"  the,  166, 

Electrical  road  car,  161. 

Electricity  for  lighting  cars,  229, 
230. 

Electric  signal  bells,  229. 

Electro-magnets,  on  Daft  locomo- 
tives, 165,  166,  173  (note). 

Elephant,  the  baby,  228. 

Elevated  railways,  that  of  Colonel 
Stevens,  32;  Ohio  Railroad 
Company's,  115,  116;  in  cities, 
174-177. 

Elevator,  passenger,  Chapter  IX, 
passim. 

Ellithorpe,  Colonel  A.  C,  155. 
Embezzlements  of  fares,  238. 
Emmons,  Danforth  and  Scudder, 
147. 

Engine-cleaner,  story  of  the,  202. 
Engine-cleaners,  the,  202. 
Engineer,  -  life  of  a  locomotive, 

203,  204. 
Engineers,  the  rival,  28,  29. 
Englishman,  anecdote  of  the,  in 

Cologne,  45. 


248 


INDEX. 


English  railways,  109-113. 
Ericsson,  18. 

Erie  railroad,  217,  228,  229. 

Eugenie,  Empress,  190. 

Evans,  Oliver,  30,  31,  57. 

Excursion  ticket,  Josiah  Perham 
inventor  of,  136. 

Exhibition,  see  Exposition. 

"Experiment,"  the,  9. 

Exposition,  National,  of  Rail- 
way Appliances,  75,  76. 

Express  car  system,  232,  233. 

F 

Fargo,  William  G.,  233  (note). 
Favre,  Louis,  138. 
Fields,  Mr.,  164. 
Fifth  Avenue  Hotel,  148.  . 
Fight  of  a  man  with  a  railroad, 
237. 

Fight  for  a  locomotive,  208-211. 
Fires,  forest  and  prairie,  79,  80. 
Fiske,  Lieutenant  Bradley  A., 
168. 

Fitchburg,  138. 

Fitchburg  railroad  (see  Hoosac 

tunnel),  138-141. 
Florence,  215. 
Fluid-retarder,  150. 
"Flving  Dutchman,"  the,  46, 

197. 

Flying  locomotive,  121. 

Forest  Fires,  79,  80. 

Foster,  Raswick  and  Company,  of 
Stourbridge,  36. 

Fox,  Charles,  18. 

France,  railway  travel  in,  107, 
108;  no  military  railway  organ- 
ization in,  182,  183. 

Francis's  "History  of  Railways," 
23. 

Franco-Prussian  War,  179-183. 
Frankfort,  62,  63,  64; 
Freight  cars,  early,  54. 
Funicular  counterpoise  railways, 
130,  131. 

G 

G-alloway,  Tom.,  77. 
Gardiner,  Robert  S.,  234  (note). 


Gauges,  213,  214. 
Georgia  campaign,  180. 
Germans,  the,  and  their  railways 

in  war,  180-184. 
Germany,  railways  in,  104-106. 
Giant's  Causeway,  162. 
Giessbach,  railroad  on  the,  131. 
Gillis,  Judge  J.  L.,  48-51. 
Glasgow,  8,  24. 

Gloucester,  8;  New  Jersey,  118. 
Grand  Canon  of  the  Arkansas, 
74. 

Grand  Central  Depot,  221. 
Grand  Junction  railway,  217. 
Granite  railway,  old,  33-35,  57, 
59. 

Grasshopper  engines,  6. 

Gray,  Thomas,  14. 

Gravity  railroad,  the,  of  Mauch 

Chunk,  35. 
Great  Wabash  railroad,  64-66. 
Great  Western  railroad  (England), 

197. 

Green  Mountain  inclined  rail- 
way (Mt.  Desert),  131,  132. 

Greenville,  New  Jersey,  164. 

Gregori,  M.  Louis,  183  (note). 

"Grip  and  Go,"  199. 

Gunnison,  Black  Canon  of  the, 
75. 

Gurney,  Goldsworthy,  8. 

H 

Hadrian's  Villa,  90. 
Hailstorm,  wonderful,  80-82. 
Hale,  Edward  Everett,  57  (note). 
Hale,  James  W. ,  232. 
Hale,  Nathan,  57,  58. 
Hambright,  William,  228. 
Hamilton,  Gail,  68  (note). 
Hamley,  Colonel,  179. 
Harlem  railroad  corporation,  171. 
Harnden,  William  F.,  232. 
Harper  and  Brothers,  146  (text 

and  note). 
"Harper's  Monthly  Magazine," 

145  (note),  185  (note),  233  (note). 
"Harper's  Weekly,"  166  (note). 
Harvard  Observatory,  89. 
Harvey,  Charles  T.,  175. 


INDEX. 


249 


Hawk,  story  of  the,  and  the  loco- 
motive smoke,  200. 

Haywood,  Mr.  Percival,  119. 

Hecker,  Mr.,  146. 

4 4  Herald, "-the  Boston  Sunday,  40 
(note). 

Herbert,  Sir  Henry,  16. 

Hindley,  Charles,  82. 

Hitchcock,  Hiram,  149. 

"Hole  in  the  Wall,"  221. 

Hollidaysburg,  Pennsylvania,  128. 

Holyhead,  Wales,  203. 

Hone,  Philip,  36. 

Honesdale,  35,  36. 

Honesdale  and  Carbondale  rail- 
road, 35-38. 

Hoosac  Tunnel  railway,  138-141. 

Hornell,  New  York,  228. 

Horse-power  car,  39. 

Horse  railroads  (see  Street  rail- 
roads). 

Hudson,  George,  28,  29. 

Hugo,  Victor,  2. 

Huskisson,  Mr.,  18. 

Hydraulic  elevators,  152-154. 

I 

Inclined  railways,  52,  64. 

Indiana,  Bloomington  and  West- 
ern railroad,  62. 

India,  railways  in,  94-98. 

Indians,  the,  of  North  America; 
their  attacks  on  railroads,  77- 
79 ;  as  railroad-hands,  78. 

Interlocking  towers,  cabins,  and 
switches,  221-223. 

Isthmus  of  Tehuantepec,  119. 

Italian  war,  railways  utilized  in, 
180. 

J 

Jacksonville,  Illinois,  66. 
Japan,  railroads  in,  91-93. 
Jervis,  John  B.,  36,  200. 
Johnstown,  Pennsylvania,  128. 
Joinville,  Prince  de,  149. 
Juniata,  128. 

K 

Kansas  Pacific  railroad,  121,  123, 
228. 


Kemble,  Mrs.  Frances,  19  (note). 
Kendall,  Amos  A.,  230. 
Kentucky,  first  railroad  in,  62, 
64. 

Kentucky  River,  the,  62. 
Kerosene,  for  oiling  track,  206. 
Kiowa,  Kansas,  80. 
Krudener,  Baron,  39. 

L 

Lackawaxen  River,  37. 
Lake  Erie,  32. 

Lancaster,  Pennsylvania,  228. 
Land  and  Pritchett,  Messrs.,  116. 
Land-grant,  the  first  railway,  70. 
Land-slide  on  Central  Pacific,  72. 
Langham  Hotel,  152. 
Latrobe,  H.  H.,  43. 
Lexington,  Kentucky,  62,  63. 
Lexington.  Kentucky,  railroad, 

62-64. 
Lichterfelde,  161. 
Light,  Charles  L.,  172. 
Lighting  cars  by  electricity  and 

phosphorescent  paint,  230. 
Lincoln,  President,  186. 
"  Lippincott's  Magazine,"  206. 
Liverpool,  14. 

Liverpool  and  Manchester  rail- 
road, 14-19,  21. 

Locomotive,  first  steam,  6;  huge 
one  for  Southern  Pacific  road, 
76;  landed  in  Ceylon,  90;  on 
sled-runners,  114,  115;  two- 
wheeled,  118;  flying,  121;  the 
"Ampere,"  165;  capture  of  a, 
185-188;  general  features  of 
the,  Chapter  XIII ;  appetite  of, 
201;  straw-burning  and  petro- 
leum-burning, 200 ;  average 
life  of,  201 ;  repairing,  201,  202 ; 
engineer,  203,  204;  chased  by 
a,  206;  a  runaway,  207;  fight 
for  a,  208-211. 

Locomotives,  road,  7,  8;  features 
of  early  (driving-wheels,  head- 
light, etc.),  54;  quaint  early, 
76,  77;  electric,  Chapter  X, 
passim;  English,  199;  Ameri- 
can, 199,  200. 

Logging  railway,  117. 


250 


IKDEX. 


London,  England,  25;  under- 
ground railway  in,  111-113; 
railroad  viaducts  in,  174,  175; 
electric  railways  in,  166,  167; 
interlocking  switch  system  of, 
221-223. 

London  and  Brighton  railroad, 
230. 

Loubat,  M.,  171,  172. 
Lowell,  Massachusetts,  207. 
Lowell  and  Nashua  railroad,  217, 
218. 

Lunches  eaten  in  cars,  106,  108. 
Lyons,  France,  cable  railways  of, 
131. 

M 

MacMahon,  179. 

Mad  River  and  Lake  Erie  rail- 
road, the,  62. 

Maidstone,  England,  8. 

Manassas  railroad,  179. 

Manchester,  15,  24. 

Manhattan  Elevated  Railroad 
Company,  1'74,  176. 

Manias  railway,  23-30. 

Mann  boudoir  cars,  195. 

Marchioness,  the,  26-28. 

Marie  Louise,  190. 

Marine  railway,  119,  120. 

Marsh,  Sylvester,  129. 

Massachusetts,  early  railroads  in, 
56-61. 

Massachusetts  Electric  Power 
Company,  165. 

Massachusetts,  whimsical  report 
of  the  House  of  Representa- 
tives of,  176. 

Matthews,  David,  77. 

Mauch  Chunk  gravity  railroad, 
126. 

Medhurst,  120. 

Meiggs,  Henry,  141,  142. 

Menlo  Park,  New  Jersey,  162. 

Meredosia,  64,  65. 

Merrimack  River,  57. 

Merryweather,  locomotive  maker, 

173. 
Mesgriny,  200. 
Metucher,  164. 
Metz,  183. 


Mexican  Central  railroad,  73,  74. 
Michigan  Central  railroad,  66,  67; 

train  lost  on,  84. 
Michigan  Southern  railroad,  84. 
Middlesex  canal,  57. 
Midland  railway,  239. 
Milan,  215. 

Miller  coupler,  buffer,  and  plat- 
form, 226,  227. 

Minot,  Charles,  217. 

Mish-Mish,  the,  99. 

Missouri  Pacific  railway,  robbery 
of  train  on  the,  242,  243. 

Mitchell,  John,  230. 

Mobile  and  Ohio  railroad,  70. 

"  Moguls,"  199. 

Mohawk  and  Hudson  railroad, 
47,  52. 

Monitor  car,  the  first,  54. 
Monotony,  Kansas,  80. 
Montgomery,  J.  E.,  143. 
Moore  and  Wyman,  151. 
Moore,  Tom,  126. 
Moosic  Mountains,  125. 
Morris,  Gouverneur  K.,  32. 
Motoneer,  the,  166. 
Movable  truck,  33. 
Mt.  Cenis  (see  Cenis). 
Mt.  Desert  railway,  131,  132. 
Mt.   Washington  railway,  New 

Hampshire,  129,  130. 
Mugby  Junction,  215  (note). 
Mules,  riding  on  cars,  35. 
Mummies,  201. 
Murdock,  his  first  engine,  6. 
Mushrooms,  stopping  of  a  train 

by,  198. 

N 

Nantygolyn,  208. 
Napoleon   Bonaparte,   180,  189, 
190. 

Napoleon  III,  190,  191. 

Narrow  gauge  roads,  214. 

Nazareth,  change  cars  for,  90. 

Neponset  River,  34. 

New  York,  4,  221. 

New  York  and  Brooklyn  bridge, 

cable  railroad  over,  173,  174. 
New  York  and  Chicago  Limited, 

198. 


INDEX. 


251 


New  York  and  Harlem  railroad, 
10,  169-171. 

New  York  Central  railroad,  52, 
69,  238;  sleeping  cars  on,  194. 

New  York  Elevated  Railroad  Com- 
pany, 175  (compare  elevated 
railways). 

North-eastern  Railway  Company 
of  England,  76. 

Northern  Cross  railroad,  64. 

Northern  Pacific  railroad,  73,  236. 

Norway,  railways  in,  102. 

4 'Notes  and  Queries,"  197. 

"  Novelty,"  18. 

O 

Ohio,  62. 

< 'Old  Ironsides,"  52-54. 
Otis  Brothers,  154.  { 
Otis,  E.  G.,  146. 
"Owd  Neddy,"  8. 

P 

Page,  Professor  C.  G.,  159,  160. 

Paine,  Colonel  William  II.,  174. 

Paisley,  8,  24. 

Palais  de  l'lndustrie,  161. 

Pan,  95.  . 

Papin,  of  Blois,  120. 

Paris  Exposition  (1878),  152. 

Paris'Exposition  (1881),  161. 

Parker  House,  Boston,  accident 
at,  155. 

Passy,  M.,  20. 

Pater  son,  New  Jersey,  62. 

Pease,  Edward  ("Owd  Neddy"),  8. 

Pennsylvania  Central  railroad, 
69,  "164,  175,  179  (note),  197, 
220,  228;  mountain  division, 
129 ;  history  of,  by  Dredge,  129 
(note). 

Pennsylvania  Coal  Company,  126. 

Pennsylvania,  first  railroad-train 
in,  52-54. 

"Pennsylvania  Magazine  of  His- 
tory and  Biography, "  1 29  (note). 

Perdonnet,  M.  Auguste,  19. 

Perkins,  Thomas  Handasyd,  33. 

"Perseverance,"  the,  18. 

Peru,  141. 


Petroleum  for  locomotives,  200. 

Phelps,  Dr.  Abner,  57. 

Philadelphia,  127,  228. 

Philadelphia,  Germantown  and 
Norristown  railroad,  52. 

Philadelphia  and  Reading  rail- 
road, 54,  56,  239. 

Phcenixville,  Pennsylvania,  56, 
118. 

Phosphorescent  paint,  230. 
Pilfering  from  railways,  239-243. 
Pinkerton,  Allan,  239. 
Pinkus,  121. 
Piraeus,  90. 

Pittenger,  Rev.  William,  185 
(note). 

Pittsburgh,  127,  exposition  of,  in 

1883,  77. 
Plate,  stolen,  240. 
Plymouth,  7. 

"Popular  Science  Monthly,"  169. 
Portage  railroad,  127-129. 
Port  Rush,  162. 
Postal-car  system,  230-232. 
Proa,  the  Indian,  32. 
"Puffing  Billy,"  the,  76. 
Pullman  car,  lighted  by  electric- 
ity, 230. 

Pullman  Car  Company,  194,  195. 
Pullman,  George  M.,  194. 

R 

Rail,  manufacture  of  a,  112,  113. 

Railroad  (see  Railway). 

Rails,  strap  or  slab,  54-56; 
grooved,  171;  step,  171. 

Railway  (see  names  of  special 
railways  elsewhere  in  the  in- 
dex), draught-power  of,  4; 
functions  of,  4;  early  objections 
to  the,  15-17,  21-23,  58,  59; 
objections  to  bv  the  negroes', 
63';  first  French,  20,  21; 
manias,  23-30;  submarine,  119; 
among  the  clouds,  141. 

"  Railway  Age,"  the,  77  (note). 

"Railway  Age"  car,  the,  193; 
wheels  of,  226. 

"Railway  Review,"  132  (note). 

Railways,  miles  built  in  United 
State's  in  1882,  3;  fixtures  and 


252 


features  of  early  English  roads, 
12;  first  American,  Chapter 
III;  on  the  ice,  115;  in  the 
tree-tops,  115;  elevated— that 
of  Colonel  Stevens's,  32;  Ohio 
Railroad  Company's,  115,  116; 
in  cities,  174-177;  wooden,  116; 
bicycle,  116,  176, 177;  toy,  118, 
119;  submarine,  119;  atmos- 
pheric, 120;  marine,  119,  120; 
mountain,  Chapter  VIII;  grav- 
ity, 35,  125-127;  funicular 
counterpoise,  130,  131 ;  electric, 
158-169;  street,  168-177;  cable 
street,  173,  174;  and  war-hos- 
pitals, 181 ;  and  ambulances, 
181. 

Rainhill,  17,  18. 

Rebate  checks,  238,  239. 

Redruth,  in  Cornwall,  6. 

Report  of  Massachusetts  Repre- 
sentatives on  an  early  railway 
plan,  176,  177. 

Reuter,  Baron,  90. 

'  *  Revue  des  Deux  Mondes,"  the, 
183  (note). 

Rigi  (see  Vaudois  and  Arth). 

Rigi-Kulm  railway,  130. 

Riggenbach,  Herr,  130. 

Riots,  railroad,  178. 

Robber  on  English  train,  109. 

Roberts,  Salomon  W.,  129  (note). 

Rochester,  61. 

"Rocket,"  the,  18. 

Rogers,  Grosvenor,  and  Ketchum, 
62,  65. 

Romilly,  200. 

Rope,  the  conductor's,  228,  229. 
Royal  Gorge,  the,  74,  75. 
Ruskin,  3,  16. 
Russell,  E.  Scott,  199. 
Russia,  railways  in,  101,  102. 

S 

Sailing  car,  39;  on  the  Kansas 

Pacific  railroad,  121. 
4 'Sampson,"  the,  76. 
Sampson,   Low  and  Company, 

234  (note). 
Sand-fence,  73. 


Sandusky,  62. 

Sanford,  Harroun  and  Warren, 
235. 

San  Francisco,  cable  roads  in,  173. 
San  Paulo  railroad,  95  (note). 
"  Sanspareil,"  the,  18. 
Saratoga,  Mt.  McGregor  and  Lake 

George  railroad,  165. 
Schenectady,  47,  48,  51,  52. 
"Science,"  77  (note),  132,  159. 
"Scientific  American,"  the,  114, 

123,  187. 
Scranton,  Pennsylvania,  126. 
"Scribner's  Monthly,"  143. 
Scudder,  Samuel  H.,  77  (note). 
Seeds,  Joseph  A.  (engineer),  204, 

205. 

Semaphore,  the,  220. 
Semmering  railway,  134. 
Semples,  General,  66. 
Shah,  the,  90. 
Sharon,  Senator,  191,  192. 
Sheer  Ali,  3. 

Sherman,  General,  and  the  rail- 
ways, 180,  184. 

Shipton,  Mother,  31,  32. 

Signals,  216-218,  229;  early  night, 
12;  candle,  12;  automatic,  220 ; 
electric,  229. 

Siemens  and  Halske,  160,  161. 

Siemens,  Messrs.,  162,  168. 

Siemens,  Professor  Werner,  159, 
161. 

Silhouette-artist  Brown,  47,  48. 
Sleeping  cars,  invention  of,  193, 

194. 
Slough,  197. 
Smalley,  E.  V.,  73. 
Smith,  Sydney.  1. 
Smoking  cars,  195. 
"Snake-heads,"  56. 
Snow  plough  on  Quincy  railroad, 

34. 

Snow  ploughs,  evidently  no,  65; 

in  the  West,  82,  83. 
Snow-storms,  trains  lost  in,  83- 

87. 

Snow's  "  Geography  of  Boston," 

35  (note). 
Soissons,  230. 
South  Carolina,  45,  122. 


INDEX. 


253 


South  Carolina  Central  railroad, 

116-118. 
Southeastern  railway,  229. 
Southern  Pacific  railroad,  69,  72, 

73. 

Spain,  travel  by  rail  in,  106,  107. 
Speed,  16,  17,  32,  65,  196-198. 
"  Spitzbergen  and  Patagonia," 
25. 

Spotters,  238. 
Springfield,  Illinois,  64. 
St.  G-erraain  railway,  20,  21. 
St.  Gothard  railway,  137,  138. 
St.  Petersburg,  197. 
Staff  and  ticket  system,  221. 
Stage-horses,  over-driving  of,  15, 
51. 

Stage  travel,  51. 
Standard  time,  87,  89. 
Stations,  railway,  214-216. 
"  Staym-ingines,"  199. 
"  Steam  caravan  "  railroad,  116- 
118. 

Steam-whistle,  62. 

Stephenson,  George,  8,  10 ;  before 
the  Parliament  Committee,  17; 
at  Rainhill,  17,  18;  talk  with 
Mrs.  Kemble,  19  (note). 

Stephenson,  John,  169,  170. 

Stephenson  locomotive  (in  Amer- 
ica), 60. 

Stevens,  Colonel  John,  32,  33. 

Stevens,  Paran,  149.  _ 

Stevens,  William,  and  his  mid- 
night ride,  202,  203. 

Stillman,  W.  J.,  223. 

Stevenson,  David,  127. 

Stockton  and  Darlington  railway, 
76. 

Stockton  and  Stokes,  44. 

Stone,  G-eneral  LeRoy,  118. 

"Stourbridge Lion,"  the,  36-38. 

" Strap"  rails,  54,  56. 

Street  railroads,  169-177;  electric, 
168;  ordinary,  169-174;  ele- 
vated, 174-177;  in  Paris,  172; 
in  England,  172;  in  various 
countries,  173. 

Studley,  Warren,  233  (note). 

Submarine  railway,  119. 

Susquehanna,  128. 


Sweden,  DuChaillu's  account  of 
railway  restaurant  in,  103,  104. 
Swinburne,  William,  62. 
Switchback  railroad,  126,  127. 

T 

Talbott,  E.  H.,  10,  77  (note),  193. 
Tathams,  the,  146. 
Taylor,  Benjamin  P.,  71  (note), 
212. 

Tehacape  Pass,  73. 

Telegraph  poles,  made  of  iron 

rails,  95  (note). 
Telegraphic  car,  122. 
Telescopical  hydraulic  elevators, 

153. 

"  Tenderfoot,"  the  story  about, 79. 
Tender  (of  locomotive),  63. 
Tennessee  campaigns,  181,  182. 
Terre  Haute,  Alton  and  St.  Louis 

railway,  193. 
Tewksbury,  Massachusetts,  207. 
Thackeray,  28  (note). 
Thiers,  M.,  20. 
Thomas,  Evan,  39. 
Thorp  and  Sprague,  50. 
Tickets,  railway,  233-237. 
Time,  standard,  87-89. 
"  Times,"  the  London,'  4. 
"  Times,"  the  New  York,  229. 
Tissandier,  Gaston,  159. 
Tivoli,  90. 

"  Tom  Thumb,"  the,  39-45. 

Tornadoes,  80,  81. 

Train,  George  Francis,  172,  173. 

Train,  New  York  and  Chicago 
Limited,  197;  stopping  a,  by 
mushrooms,  198 ;  despatcher, 
218,  219;  staff  and  ticket  sys- 
tem, 221.' 

Train,  lost  in  quicksand,  etc.,  80; 
lost  in  snow  storms,  83-87. 

Tramways  (see  Street  railroads). 

Trevithick,  Richard,  anecdote  of 
his  road  locomotive,  7. 

"  Tribune,"  the  New  York,  166, 
205. 

Troy  and  Greenfield  railway,  138. 
Truck  of  American  locomotive, 
200. 

Trunk  lines,  definition  of,  68 ; 


254 


LKTDEX. 


formation  of,  69 ;  early  western, 
69.  ' 

Tufts,  Otis,  146,  148-151. 

Tunnel,  the  first  railroad  tunnel 
in  America,  128;  the  St.  Goth- 

'  ard,  137. 

Turk,  the  imperturbable  old,  99. 
Tussaud,  Madame,  190. 
Two-wheeled  locomotive,  118. 

U 

Uetliberg  railroad,  131. 

Underground  railways  of  Lon- 
don, etc.,  111-113. 

Union  Pacific  railroad,  70-72,  78, 
81,  83. 

V 

Vanderbilt,  President  W.  H.,  car 
of,  192. 

Vaudois  Rigi  railroad,  130,  131. 
Velocipedes,  railway,  118. 
Ventilation  of  cars,  243  (note). 
Verviers,  215. 

Vesuvius,  Mt.,  railway  of,  132, 
133. 

Viaducts,  railroad,  174,  175.. 
"  Victory,"  the  car,  54. 
Victoria,   Queen,  travelling  of, 

191. 
Vitznau,  130. 
Von  Moltke,  General,  183. 

W 

Wabash  railroad,  64-66. 
Wagner,  Webster,  194. 
Wales,  Prince  of,  149. 
Wales,  South,  198. 


Washburn,  William,  149. 

Waterloo,  181. 

Waterman,  Henry,  146. 

Waterspouts,  80. 

Wellington,  Duke  of,  18,19. 

Weller,  Tony,  2. 

Wells,  Henry,  233  (note). 

West  Point  Foundry,  36,  45. 

<  'West  Point,"  the,  46,  47. 

Western  railroad,  ceremonies  at- 
tending the  opening  of,  61. 

Westinghouse  brakes,  193,  227, 
228. 

Wheel,  manufacture  of  a,  225, 
226. 

Whitehead,  Joseph,  77. 
Whitman,  Walt,  3,  74. 
Whittier,  Charles,  146  (note). 
Wilkins,  Bishop,  121. 
Williams,  Captain  C.  W.,  122. 
Winans,  Ross,  33. 
Winslow,  J.  B.,  10. 
Woman  and  electricity,  158. 
Women  in  railway  speculation, 

25-28. 
Wooden  railways,  116. 
Woodruff,  inventor  of  sleeping 

car,  193,  194. 
Worcester,  59,  60. 
Wordsworth,  the  poet,  16. 
Wurtz,  William  and  Maurice, 

125. 

Y 

Yarns,  curious  railway  (in  the 
West),  205. 

Z 

Zanckerode  electric  railway,  161. 


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and  careful  manner"  of  Louis  the  Fourteenth,  Fenelon,  Bossuet,  Massiilon, 
Pascal,  Rousseau,  Madame  Geoff rin,  Joubert,  Guizot,  The  Abbe  Galiani,  and 
Frederick  the  Great. 

u  Such  admirable  biographical  essays  in  so  small  a  compass  are  nowhere 
else  to  be  found.  They  are  miniatures  of  the  most  excellent  workmanship." 
— Edinburgh  Review. 

Mathews  —  Oratory  and  Orators.  By  William  Mathews, 
LL.D.    Cloth,  i2mo,  $2;  half  calf,  $3.50;  full  calf,  $5. 

UA  mine  of  wealth,  full  of  practical  suggestions  and  information.  Besides 
the  value  of  the  directions  to  a  public  speaker,  the  book  abounds  with  spark- 
ling anecdotes  and  gems  of  thought  of  celebrated  authors."—  Record,  Phila. 

"A  book  of  remarkable  interest,  as  valuable  for  its  sound  criticism  and 
stirring  practical,  suggestions  as  it  is  fascinating  in  matter  and  style.  I  do 
not  know  anything  equal  to  it  in  the  field  it  covers."— J.  L.  Chamberlain, 
LL.D.,  President  of  Bow  do  in  College. 

Mathews  —  Literary  Style;  and  Other  Essays.  By  William 
Mathews,  LL.D.    i2mo,  cloth,  $1.50. 

u  Its  influence  is  excellent  and  ennobling." — Standard,  Chicago. 

u  Can  be  dipped  into  anywhere  with  the  certainty  of  finding  something 
good  and  something  worth  remembering."-  Transcript,  Boston. 


6    P  UBLICA  TIONS  OF  S.  C.  GRIGGS  &  CO. ,  CHIC  A  GO. 


Morris  —  British   Thought   and    Thinkers.  Introductory 

Studies,  Critical,  Biographical  and  Philosophical.    By  George 

S.  Morris,  Ph.D.    i2mo,  cloth,  $1.75. 

"It  presents  wise  reflection,  entertaining  speculation,  valuable  literary 
criticism,  and  a  large  amount  of  interesting  biographical  matter,  given  with 
the  skill  of  a  practised  writer  and  the  force  and  authority  of  an  able  and  pow- 
erful mind.  It  is  a  book  of  great  value  and  deep  interest." — Courier,  Boston. 

Morris  —  Manual  of  Classical  Literature.  Comprising  Bio. 
graphical  and  Critical  Notices  of  principal  Greek  and  Roman 
Authors,  Illustrative  Extracts  from  their  Works,  etc.  By 
Charles  Morris.    i2mo,  cloth,  $1.75. 

"  The  book  presents  a  more  complete  survey  of  classical  literature  than  can 
elsewhere  be  found  in  the  same  compass." — Scotsman,  Edinburgh,  Scotland, 

Miller  —  What  Tommy  Did.    By  Emily  Huntington  Miller. 

Illustrated     i6mo,  paper  covers,  50  cents;  cloth,  $1. 

"  We  laughed  all  the  evening  over  the  many  funny  things  Tommy  said  and 
did.  We  will  warrant  that  no  one,  young  or  old,  will  lay  it  down  until  read 
through." — Northern  Christian  A  dvocate. 

Mishaps  of  Mr.  Ezekiel  Pelter.    Illustrated.  $1.50. 

41  If  it  be  your  desire  to  1  laugh  and  grow  fat,'  you  will  find  The  Mishaps  of 
Ezekiel  Pelter  a  great  help."— A  merican  Christian  Review,  Cincinnati. 

Raymond  —  The  Orator's  Manual.  A  practical  and  philo- 
sophical treatise  on  Vocal  Culture,  Emphasis  and  Gesture,  with 
selections  for  Declamation  and  Reading.  For  Schools  and  Col- 
leges, and  for  Public  Speakers  and  Readers.  By  G.  L.  Ray- 
mond, M.A.,  Prof,  of  Oratory,  Princeton  College.  $1.50. 

"  The  freshest,  clearest,  most  complete  and  soundly  philosophical  work  on 
a  public  speaker's  training  that  it  has  been  our  fortune  to  meet.  In  form  and 
substance  it  is  admirable.  A  faithful  study  and  practice  of  the  principles  and 
examples  of  this  book  will  result  in  a  natural,  graceful  and  effective  style  of 
public  speaking." — Christian  Union,  New  York. 

Robertson's  Living  Thoughts.  A  Thesaurus.  Selected  from 
the  writings  of  Frederick  W.  Robertson  by  K.  B.  Tupper. 
With  an  Analytical  Index.    i2mo,  cloth.  $1.25. 

41  This  volume  contains  the  cream  of  his  writings.'.' — Transcript,  Boston. 

Rogers  —  The  Waverley  Dictionary.  An  Alphabetical  Ar- 
rangement of  all  the  Characters  in  Sir  Walter  Scott's  Novels, 
with  a  Descriptive  Analysis  of  each  Character,  and  Illustrative 
Selections  from  the  Text.  By  May  Rogers.  i2mo.  cloth,  $2; 
half  calf,  gilt  top,  $3.50;  full  calf,  gilt  edges,  $5. 

"The  selections  are  made  with  excellent  judgment,  and  form  a  worthy 
duster-roll  of  the  most  immortal  of  all  the  Scottish  clans.  "—A^leton's  Jour- 


PUBLICATIONS  OF  S.  C.  GRIGGS  &>  CO.,  CHICAGO.  7 


Robert  —  Rules  of  Order  for  Deliberative  Assemblies.  By 

Major  Henry  M.  Robert.    Pocket  Size.    Cloth,  75  cents. 

The  Standard  Parliamentary  Authority  in  the  United  States. 
u  The  best  book  extant." — Hon.  y.  W.  Husted,  late  Speaker  N.  Y.  Legisla- 
ture. 

"  The  most  conspicuous  and  comprehensive  embodiment  of  the  rules  ob- 
served in  American  assemblies  that  I  have  ever  seen.  It  should  be  studied 
by  all  who  wish  to  become  familiar  with  the  correct  usages  of  public  meet- 
ings."— Bishop  Haven. 

Taylor  —  Songs  of  Yesterday.  By  Benj.  F.  Taylor.  Beauti- 
fully illustrated.  Octavo,  with  handsomely  ornamented  cover 
in  black  and  gold.    Full  gilt  edges,  $3. 

u  The  volume  is  magnificently  gotten  up.  .  .  .  There  is  a  simplicity,  a  ten- 
derness and  a  pathos,  intermingled  always  with  a  quiet  humor,  about  his 
writings,  which  is  inexpressibly  charming.  Some  of  his  earlier  poems  have 
become  classic,  and  many  of  those  in  this  volume  are  destined  to  as  wide  a 
popularity  as  Longfellow's  k  Village  Blacksmith '  or  Whittier's  '  Maud  Mul- 
ler.'" — Transcript,  Boston. 

Taylor  —  Between  the  Gates.  By  Benj.  F.  Taylor.  Illus- 
trated.   i2mo,  cloth,  $1.50. 

11  It  is  the  richest,  raciest  and  most  readable  book  of  the  kind  that  we  ever 
read.  ...  It  gives  a  better  and  clearer  view  of  California  life,  climate  and 
customs,  than  has  ever  before  been  written." — Evangel,  San  Francisco. 

Taylor  —  Summer  Savory.    By  Benj.  F.  Taylor.    Cloth,  $1. 

"A  delightful  work,  crammed  full  with  brilliant  sketches  that  combine 
piquancy,  freshness,  power  and  humor." — Record,  Philadelphia. 

Taylor  —  Pictures  of  Life  in  Camp  and  Field.  By  Benj.  F. 
Taylor.    i2mo,  cloth,  $1.00. 

u  Each  of  these  sketches  is  a  gem  in  itself.  One  may  search  the  annals  of 
war  from  Tacitus  to  Kinglake  and  not  find  anything  finer. — Inter  Ocean. 

Taylor  —  Old-Time  Pictures  and  Sheaves  of  Rhyme.  By 

Benj.  F.  Taylor.    Illustrated.    Small  quarto,  silk  cloth,  $1.50; 

the  same,  full  gilt  edges  and  side,  $1.75. 

"  I  do  not  know  of  any  one  who  so  well  reproduces  the  home  scenes  of  long 
ago." — yohn  G.  Whittier. 

Taylor — The  World  on  Wheels,  and  Other  Sketches.  By 

Benj.  F.  Taylor.    Illustrated.    i2mo,  cloth,  $1. 

"  One  of  the  most  elegant,  as  well  as  pungent  and  rich,  specimens  of  wit 
and  humor  extant." — Illustrated  Weekly^  New  York. 

"  Few  equal  Mr.  Taylor  as  a  word -painter.  He  fascinates  with  his  artistic 
touches,  and  exhilarates  with  his  sparkling  humor,  and  subdues  with  his  sweet 
pathos.    His  sentences  glisten  like  gems  in  the  sunlight." — yournal,  Albany. 


8   PUBLICATIONS  OF  S.  C.  GXIGGS  &>  CO.,  CHICAGO. 


Welsh  — The  Development  of  English  Literature  and  Lan- 
guage.   By  Prof.  A.  H.  Welsh.    2  vols.,  1100  pages.  Crown 
octavo,  cloth,  $5;  half  calf,  $8:  full  turkey  morocco,  gilt  edges,$i2. 
"A  really  great  work."— Press,  Philadelphia. 

"As  complete  in  its  survey  as  it  is  attractive  in  style  and  manner."— Critic. 

"  The  plan  is  excellent  and  the  execution  felicitous."— Edwin  P.  Whipple. 

11  The  volumes,  considered  merely  as  a  work  of  reference,  must  enter  the 
library  of  every  student  of  literature."— Edmund  Clarence  Stedman. 

"  The  best  work  for  the  general  reader  that  has  yet  been  published,  and  we 
unreservedly  recommend  it  to  the  student  as  well,  for  its  learning,  very  per- 
fect treatment  and  its  style.  .  .  .  The  criticisms  of  American  authors  will  be 
found  to  be  analytical,  exhaustive  and  terse,  and  to  be  the  finest  examples  of 
such  work.  The  articles  on  Hawthorne  and  Emerson,  which  are  complete, 
have  never  been  equalled."— Globe,  Boston. 

Wheeler— The  Foreigner  in  China.    By  L.  N.  Wheeler, 
D.D.    i2mo,  cloth,  $1.25. 

u  The  fruits  of  his  observations  embrace  much  heretofore  unknown  to  the 
general  public,  and  readers  will  find  the  book  exceptionally  interesting."— 
Transcript,  Boston. 

Winchell  — Preadamites;  or,  A  Demonstration  of  the  Ex- 
istence of  Men  before  Adam.  Together  with  a  Study  of 
their  Condition,  Antiquities,  Racial  Affinities,  and  Progressive 
Dispersion  over  the  Earth.  With  Charts  and  Illustrations.  By 
Alexander  Winchell,  LL.D.,  Prof,  of  Geology  and  Paleon- 
tology in  the  University  of  Michigan;  Author  of  "Sketches  of 
Creation,"  etc.    8vo,  cloth,  $3.50. 

UA  remarkable  and  powerful  contribution  to  the  reconciliation  of  the  Bible 
and  modern  science."— Literary  World,  Boston. 

u  The  work  is  popular  in  its  best  sense  —  attractive  in  style,  clear  in  exposi- 
tion, and  eminently  instructive.  ...  It  is  not  too  much  to  say  that  it  settles 
the  controversy."— Popular  Science  Monthly. 

Winchell  — Sparks  from  a  Geologist's  Hammer.  By  Alex. 
Winchell,  LL.D.  Illustrated.  i2mo,  cloth,  $2. 
^  "  This  superb  work  is  of  thrilling  interest  to  every  reader  who  has  an  intel- 
ligent desire  to  know  more  of  this  wonderful  planet  on  which  we  live.  .  .  . 
The  chapter,  lA  Grasp  of  Geologic  Time,'  is  worth  more  to  the  general 
reader  than  the  price  of  the  whole  book.  .  .  .  The  plan  of  this  book  is  most 
admirable.  Prof.  Winchell's  first  chapter  takes  the  reader  upon  an  interest- 
ing excursion  to  Mont  Blanc  and  the  Mer  de  Glace,  where  the  cesthetic  aspect 
of  geology,  as  there  so  beautifully  displayed,  is  presented.  This  is  followed 
by  three  chapters  on  '  The  Old  Age  of  the  Continents,'  '  Obliterated  Conti- 
nents,' and  'A  Grasp  of  Geologic  Time';  following  with  other  chapters,  Cli- 
matic, Historical  and  Philosophical.  It  is  a  treasure  which  should  find  a 
cherished  place  in  every  family  library."— Home  Journal,  Boston. 

f**Any  of  these  books  will  be  sent  by  mail,  post-paid,  on  receipt  of  the 

price,  by  the  publishers.